Matchmaking
by snuffleslove
Summary: What starts as a little innocent matchmaking for Harry, turns into a whole lot of romantic trouble for herself. Will Hermione follow her heart or let her brain deny her true love? Read on! Hermione/Draco, Harry/Sirius, Remus/Tonks, etc. Please review!
1. Chapter 1

"Malfoy, just LISTEN to me for Christssake

"Malfoy, just LISTEN to me for Christssake!"

"Shut the fuck up, Mudblood! I don't need your fucking help!"

Hermione Granger rolled her eyes, and went back to her reading. It had been like this for the past five days, ever since Professor McGonagall had assigned her to tutor Malfoy. Apparently, the reason behind this was because he had been cutting classes and skiving homework, and had fallen behind. But Hermione suspected an ulterior motive. Like, perhaps McGonagall wanted to torture and kill her.

"It's working," she said miserably to herself. Everyday they met for half an hour. And everyday, Draco Malfoy, with his stubborn Malfoy ego, refused her help. Whenever she tried to speak, he would cut her off with a string of foul words, and because of this, they were still on the first assignment in the notebook McGonagall had given them.

Hermione was shaken from her thoughts by the sound of the door slamming.

"Thank goodness, half an hour up," she thought to herself, and walked quickly out the door, and straight into Professor McGonagall, who looked down at her sternly. Hermione gulped.

"Professor McGonagall. What a surprise," she said nervously.

"Ms. Granger, I presume that you find none of the spells on the assignment sheet difficult. Is that correct?"

"Yes, Professor."

"Well then, may I ask why you still remain on the first one in the book? I'm quite disappointed in this. I was hoping you would get through at least one spell a day."

"Well, you see professor," Hermione said, deciding that honesty was the best policy in this case. "He won't take my help. Whenever I begin to talk, he talks over me, saying foul things, and insulting myself and my friends. I don't know what to do."

Professor McGonagall gave her a small, knowing smile. "You do understand, Ms. Granger, that I'm doing this to help you, not to bring you down? I believe that this experience will be a valuable one for you, and I want you to try your best not to be discouraged." Hermione nodded, hesitantly.

"Very well, fortunately for you, I know exactly how to deal with Mr. Malfoy. However, I must advise you to finish all your schoolwork before coming down tomorrow. Goodbye Ms. Granger." And she walked into the classroom, but not before Hermione noticed a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Oii, Hermione!" Harry called from down the hall. "I've been waiting forever," he said as he approached her. "Don't tell me Malfoy wanted extra, extra help."

Hermione laughed, and shook her head, and then retold what McGonagall had said. When she was finished, Harry shrugged.

"I don't know what she's planning, but I think you should take her advice and finish all your work. She definitely has SOMETHING up her sleeve."

"Maybe I should bring an extra thick book," said Hermione, grinning. Harry smiled at her.

"I admire you, you know. For putting up with him. I'm sure I would have killed him by now."

"Don't give me any ideas," she warned. "He's getting worse and worse each day. He's always insulting you, and Ron, and me, and my family, and Gryffindor, and soon it's going to get to be too much, and I'm going to hex him into oblivion."

Harry put his arm around her shoulders comfortingly. "Don't worry, Mione. We'll get him back for all this eventually. Hopefully, Dumbledore will finally understand that I'm telling the truth about him being a Death eater, and we'll be able to send him to Azkaban, or at least kick him out of school."

Hermione sighed her agreement, and they walked in silence for a moment.

"Where's Ron?" Hermione asked suddenly, because it seemed like Ron never spent time with the two of them anymore.

"Er…" Harry's hesitance told her everything.

"Oh."

"Hermione…" Harry said bracingly.

"What?" she snapped annoyed that he was treating her like a ticking bomb all of a sudden. Like she cared who Ron was dating. He could snog Lavender Brown all he wanted, she did not care one bit.

"She's nothing compared to you. You should know that," Harry said quietly. She shook her head, and said nothing. They walked in silence once more.

The next day, when Hermione walked to the usual classroom for tutoring sessions, Malfoy and McGonagall were already there, waiting for her.

"Good afternoon Mr. Malfoy, Ms. Granger," she greeted them. "Today you will be trying something new for your tutoring sessions. Hopefully, it will be more…successful then the usual method. Today, there is a charm on the door. Unless the spell is performed correctly, you will not be able to leave the room. If you attempt to leave, you will be thrown backwards, with much force. Ms. Granger, if the situation arises, you do know the movement-slower spell, am I right?" Hermione nodded. "Excellent, because you WILL need it. I must warn you, the charm is not to be taken lightly. It will forcefully throw you into the opposing wall, which could very well knock you out for a couple of hours. Be careful and good luck." And she escorted them through the door and then walked out.

Hermione smiled. "McGonagall is brilliant," she thought to herself. "I wonder how long it's going to take."

She watched silently as Malfoy moved to the other end of the classroom, and stared blankly out of the lone window.

"Malfoy," she began, but as usual he cut her off.

"Look Mudblood," he snarled. "Just leave me alone, alright?"

Hermione stayed quiet. "More stubborn than I thought," she said to herself. "Oh well, it's not my problem. I have things to do." And she sat in her usual corner, reading.

They stayed that way for a little more than an hour; Malfoy attempting the spell every once in awhile, or just staring blankly into space, and Hermione reading.

Finally, Malfoy threw his arms up in frustration.

"This is fucking ridiculous!"

"Well…Maybe I can…"  
"NO! SHUT UP! Malfoys don't give in!" There was silence for a second, then–

"Maybe she was lying. Maybe I can just…" He walked up to the door, and stared at it silently, as if making up his mind about something. Then, he tried to walk through. Immediately he was thrown back with an incredibly bang! Hermione reflexively slowed him down, and he landed gently on the opposing wall.

Then, on second thought, she froze him.

"Wow! Would you look at that! You can't cut me off anymore! What a surprise," she said with biting sarcasm. "Okay, pay attention. Here's how you do it. Just a light flick of the wrist okay?" She demonstrated slowly for him, and then lazily unfroze him. Even he understood that it would be stupid to resist now. He quickly said the spell, transfiguring the piece of wood into cloth, and then stormed out of the room.

Hermione smirked triumphantly. "Apparently, they do give in." She crossed out the spell in the notebook, and left the piece of cloth as proof for Professor McGonagall.

When she left the classroom, Harry was waiting for her, which surprised her because the session had taken a lot longer than usual.  
"Hermione…I have to tell you something." He was fidgeting slightly with his robes, and he looked pretty nervous. Hermione smiled at him. She was pretty sure she knew what this was going to be about, but she remained silent.

"Maybe, we should go some place more private."

"Sure," she smiled reassuringly at him, then took his hand and led the way outside. It was just starting to get warmer after a bitter cold winter, but it was still cold enough that most of the population was inside, in the common rooms.  
Standing outside under their favorite tree, she leaned into him, seeking his warmth, and he put his arms around her protectively. Finally, after a long moment, she pulled away, looking into his eyes.

"Tell me."

"Alright, I…Hermione, I'm gay."

She grinned at him, her eyes dancing in amusement. And he was taken aback. This was not the reaction he had expected from her. Suddenly, it dawned on him.

"You knew! You knew all this time!" She nodded, still grinning.

"How come you didn't say anything?"

"Because I wanted to see how long it would take you to tell me." He shook his head.

"You're…something else, Hermione."  
"So…" she said mischievously, "Who's the lucky bloke?"

He studied her for a minute, and then looked away, hanging his head in shame.

"You already know," he mumbled.

"Hey," she said softly, lifting his chin up so he was looking into her eyes. "We can't help who we fall in love with."

"Yeah, but…it just doesn't seem fair," he said, suddenly angry. "Not only am I the Boy Who Lived, destined to a life of unwanted publicity, and to fight Voldomort, the darkest wizard of our time, but now I like blokes AND I'm in love with the one man who is the closest I have to a father? I mean, think of the press Hermione! They'll have a field day if this gets out. It would be so much easier to just fall for a pretty girl and get married and start a family."  
"Harry, Sirius is an amazing man. He's smart, funny, and kind, and not to mention damn hott. You have amazing taste," she winked at him, and he gave her a half smile. "And anyway, the press be damned, you still have me."

"And for that, I'm eternally grateful." He gave her his true, heart-warming smile, and pulled her in close for a hug, leaning his head gently on hers. He pulled away when he heard a group of girls giggling and pointing as they walked by.

"You know, I'm ruining your rep like this."

"What do you mean?" she asked confused.

"You'll never be able to get a date now. Everyone thinks you're going out with me."

She rolled her eyes at him. "As if any other relationship could be as important as mine and yours."

"Even one with Ron?"

She looked away.

"Ron…has a girl friend."

"Like that's going to last long Hermione!"

"What? Six months isn't a long time?!"

"He loves you Hermione. He just hasn't realized it yet."  
"Harry you're wrong. Now let's just…"  
"Won't you even give him a chance?"

"Harry, I can't! He's the one who's dating someone else right now! He's the one who broke MY heart. I need to move on. I can't wait for him forever. I need to forget about him. And anyway, he's making that awfully easy to do."

Harry pulled her close again. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"I know," she murmured against his chest.  
After a long moment of silence, Harry spoke again. "He's never going to love me the way I want him to. He's never going to see me as a bloke and not a son."

"Oh, Harry. Just give it time. He'll see."

Harry sighed.

"Come on, Mione, you're shivering. Let's get you inside."

They walked arm in arm back towards the castle, Hermione lost in her own thoughts.

"Now that Harry's ready to admit it, it won't be long before they discover that the feeling is mutual. After all, even if Sirius doesn't love Harry in that way now, he won't be able to help himself. There's nothing NOT to love about Harry. And Sirius's love already runs deep for him anyway. It'll be impossible for them not to be happy together. All they need is a push in the right direction. Maybe…Wait, tomorrow is a Hogsmeade trip right? Maybe I could just…."

"Hermione?" Harry shook her, and she blinked up at him. He laughed a little at her. "I thought you had fallen asleep on your feet."

She grinned sheepishly at him.

"Come on, I'm starving, let's go eat."

"Boys and their stomachs," she shook her head. "You go on, I'll meet you later. There's something I have to do in the common room."

"Alright, I'll be seeing you later!" And he turned in the opposite direction.

Hermione hurried to the common room, uttering a silent prayer that it would be empty. Fortunately, Merlin was listening. She ran through the deserted common room and up the boy's dormitory stairs. After a moment's trepidation over what she might find the sixth year boys' dormitories, she opened the door. She walked quickly to Harry's trunk, ruffled through it, found what she was looking for, and then crept down the stairs.

Curled up in one of the big comfy couches before the fire, she looked at the beautiful mirror in her hand. Then taking a deep breath, she stated "Sirius Black" clearly into it.

Sirius's handsome face instantly appeared in mirror. "Harry! It's so good to…Hermione?" Hermione noticed that his face fell slightly when he realized that it was her. But he quickly covered it up. "Hermione! How may I be of service?" he asked in his most charming voice, winking at her.

"Sirius. It's wonderful to see you. I was wondering. Do you have any plans for tomorrow?"

"Erm, not exactly. It's been ages since I've seen Remus. I was going to meet up with him, tomorrow morning."  
"Perfect! Would you like to join Harry and I in Hogsmeade for lunch?"  
"I'm sure it would be fine…but if you don't mind my asking, why?"

"Well, because Harry misses you Sirius. He wants to see you."  
"Well, I highly doubt that…"  
Hermione was surprised.  
"What do you mean?"

"It's just that, Harry hasn't spoken to me properly since…I can't even remember when. It's terrible. I don't know what to do."  
"Sirius, I'm sure it's some kind of misunderstanding. Come visit us tomorrow. We can double date!"

"Double...date..? Hermione, have you lost it? There are three blokes and only one girl."

"And since when has that stopped you?" she winked at him mischievously and then spoke very fast.

"Okay, tomorrow, 1 o'clock, The Three Broomsticks. Don't be late!! Okay bye!"

And she hung up, feeling very satisfied with herself, and leaving an extremely befuddled Sirius on the other end.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, Harry and Hermione arrived at The Three Broomsticks at 1:05

The next day, Harry and Hermione arrived at The Three Broomsticks at 1:05. Hermione quickly scanned the bar, and then smiled to herself.

"Come on, Harry," she said, tugging at his sleeve. "We already have a table."

He followed her line of vision, and then looked down at her incredulously.

"Hermione! I can't believe you invited them!"

"Why not? Come on Harry, relax. It'll be fun. We haven't seen them in ages. Let's just enjoy their company okay? No pressure."  
He shook his head, and then followed her as she lead the way to where Sirius Black and Remus Lupin were sitting. It wasn't hard to find them: they were easily the best looking blokes in the bar, and the pair of them made for a lot of gossip. In fact, ever since Sirius's name had been cleared, he and Remus had been getting a lot of offers from both men and women, but they both turned them down. Remus, because he was in love with someone, but secretly, and Sirius…well, Hermione hoped it was because he secretly fancied Harry.

"Harry! Hermione! It's wonderful to see you both. It's been too long," said Remus, standing to give Hermione a hug and to shake Harry's hand. And it had been almost six months since they had last seen Remus. They had order work and the full moon to thank for that.

"Good to see you too Remus. We've missed you," said Harry, grinning at the former proffessor. There was a way about Remus that just put everyone around him at ease, and Harry respected the man greatly for it.

"And we have missed you," Remus replied, gesturing at Sirius to include him too. Sirius smiled at Harry, but Harry did not turn to meet his eyes. He took his place besides Hermione and said nothing. Sirius did not notice, or he pretended not to at least. Instead, he cheerfully ordered a couple of butterbeers to go around.

"So," said Hermione, to break the silence that followed. "How's the Order?"

"Fairly decent," replied Sirius. "Remus here has been quite successful in his missions at least. It's quite an impressive record he's got."  
"Oh shut it, Sirius. You know all the credit doesn't belong to me."

"You guys are going on missions together!?" Hermione exclaimed. "That must be brilliant. I bet Ron and Harry would love to do that. Wouldn't you Harry?"

He shrugged. "I suppose so," he mumbled, still not looking at Sirius.

Inside her head, Hermione rolled her eyes. _Boys._ He can face Lord Voldomort when he's eleven years old, but he can't deal with his own feelings.

"It is great," Sirius agreed after a moment. "Just like old times. At least I'm finally out of the house anyway. And Remus is normally good company. When he's not acting like the old school prefect." Sirius rolled his eyes dramatically, winking at Hermione.

"Hey now! Someone's got to be responsible! Anyway, everyone knows," he whispered loudly to Hermione, "that he can't do anything without me. I just don't like to embaress him."

"Oh you dog!" Sirius exclaimed, pretending to be hurt.

"Wolf, actually." Remus stated matter-of-factly.

Hermione laughed, and even Harry grinned slightly at Remus, who winked at them both.

"So tell me," Hermione began. "Any new leads in the Order? Theories?"

Remus hesitated. "No, not really. Nothing really substantial…"  
"Nothing on Draco Malfoy?" Harry interrupted, and Remus turned to him slowly.

"Harry, Professor Dumbledore has told me to advise you to let him alone. This is a delicate thing he's playing with, Harry. He's afraid that _anything_ will tip Draco either way."

"What do you mean?" Hermione and Harry asked at the same time. They looked at each other and grinned. The exchange was not lost on Sirius.

"Draco is going through...a hard time right now," Remus explained. "Dumbledore is hoping to sway him to the light."  
"Impossible," Harry muttered darkly. "He's too much of a coward to consider straying from his father's protection."  
"Ah, but you see Harry, it's not an easy thing, to go against everything that you are brought up to believe. To go against your family, your friends, Voldomort…it will be extremely difficult for Draco, and even for Dumbledore to try and protect him. It's not an easy thing at all."

"But, Dumbledore can do anything," Harry argued. "Dumbledore will be able to offer him any kind of protection. He won't have to worry about a thing. It'll be easier for him to come to our side."

"It's not that simple, Harry," Remus said firmly.

Harry opened his mouth to argue some more, but Sirius spoke up.

"He's right Harry, trust me. I've been there."

Remus turned to Sirius and gave him a small smile, and Hermione smiled apologetically.  
"That's right," she said. "I'm sorry, I forgot. You were in the same place as Draco."

"No, not the same place. A better place. For Draco, he would be going against EVERYONE. His friends, his family. Everyone. For me, I had James and Remus. They were holding me here. To the Order, to the light. So at least I had a place to turn to, people to go to. Draco has…no one. He'd be alone on this side, because all of us don't trust him, won't be friendly with him. It's hard to betray the most important people in your life, when you know that's what's waiting for you. And then, you have to worry about the people you DO care about. Like your mother and father. Or even worse, your best mates. What if the Dark Lord punishes them for your betrayal? What if he hurts them because of what you did? Voldomort does not take betrayal lightly. It's a tricky thing, if you're concerned about your safety. It's even worse if you're concerned about the safety of your loved ones."

Sirius looked away, remembering, and Remus shook his head. Hermione looked at Remus, silently asking for an explanation.

"He tried to push us away," Remus explained. "Said he was doing it for our own protection. James and I flipped out of course, and stubbornly refused. You know us. Nothing was too big for the Marauders. And anyway, we HAD to worry about Sirius. HE wasn't worried about himself at all. He was reckless, stupidly so. Too concerned about our safety to worry about his own."

Sirius gave Remus a small smile. Remus shook his head again.

"Those were some tough times for the Marauders."  
"And I have apologized more than a million times!" protested Sirius.

"I'm not saying it's your fault Padfoot and you know it. I'm just telling them the truth. You know you didn't have to block us out like that. It would have made things so much simpler. You could have just let us help you."

"And let you lose your lives to protect me?" said Sirius angrily. "Over my dead body."

Remus winced, and Sirius suddenly remembered himself.

"Moony, I'm sorry," he said softly, touching his shoulder lightly, and then he turned to Hermione and Harry, as if suddenly realizing they were there. "I didn't mean to go off like that."

Remus nodded, shaking himself lightly.  
"Come on, let's talk about happier things."

Hermione and Harry looked at them. They had been watching the exchange between the two old friends silently, but now they had so many questions.

Sirius didn't give them a chance though.

"So! When are you two going to make it official?" he asked, grinning at them both.

Harry and Hermione looked at each other, and Harry spoke, never looking away from her.

"We're just friends."  
"Come on now," Sirius insisted. "You two would be perfect for each other, and after all love is only one step after friendship."

Harry continued to look at Hermione, and Remus watched the exchange confusedly. He couldn't decipher either of their expressions.

"Sirius, we're just friends. Nothing more." Harry said firmly.

"Don't be silly Harry. You two are old enough now," Sirius said earnestly. "Anyway, you'd have my blessing."  
Finally Hermione broke the eye contact, looking down, and Harry stood up abruptly.

"I'm going out for some air," he said quietly, and left the restaurant, without looking back.

Too late, Sirius realized his mistake.

"Was it something I said?" Sirius asked. Hermione sighed.

"I just, can't seem to get through to him nowadays!" Sirius exclaimed, frustratedly. "It's like he hates me! Notice that he didn't look at me once today! I would apologize, but I don't know what I did!"

"It's not you," Hermione said soothingly. "He's just having a rough time of it all."

"No! It IS me! He was fine with you and Moony!"  
"Come now, Sirius," said Moony. "You're acting like a little girl. I'm sure it's nothing. Remember how he was after you died? He was inconsolable. And then when you came back to us, for awhile, he couldn't stop smiling. He loves you a whole lot Padfoot. And besides, if I can recall correctly, you went through a similar phase once."

"Yes, but that was when I thought I was in love with you," Sirius stated a bit impatiently. Hermione looked up at this, and Remus turned to her suddenly, realization in his eyes. Hermione nodded imperceptibly. Sirius missed the exchange.

"Please tell me if he says anything to you?" he asked Hermione pleadingly. "He's my godson. I want to be there for him."

Hermione nodded. "Of course, Sirius." She smiled at the two of them.

"It's been wondeful seeing you two. I have to go get some things from Hogsmeade, but make sure you keep in touch. We'll have to do this again sometime."  
Sirius smiled warmly at her though there was still worry in his eyes. "Come on Remus, let's get home."  
"No, actually, I think I'm going to stay. You could really use my advice with this," he said meaningfully to Hermione, and she recognized the double meaning.

"Alright," said Sirius. "I'll see you at home."

Hermione and Remus walked in silence for a bit, before Remus turned to her.

"How long?"

"He just told me yesterday, but I've known for a long time."

"Hermione…there are things about us that you don't know. Things that you might not want to know about us. It could complicate things. A whole lot."

"You and Sirius had a thing," she said, looking at him.

"Yes. As did James and I, and Sirius and James."

Hermione stopped and stared at him, amazed.

"You can see where the complications lie then," he gave a rueful smile.

"Go on."

"It began with Sirius's feelings for me. He started avoiding me. It became pretty drastic. Whenever I walked into a room, he walked out. He'd sit at the opposite end of the classroom. He wouldn't look me in the eye. Apparently it was because he couldn't accept that he was gay. Anyway, finally James confronted him about it, and when James found out, he started to play matchmaker. We were together for about a year. Maybe a bit more."

"A YEAR?!" Hermione interrupted.

Remus chuckled. "Yes. So many people were surprised that he could remain faithful for that long. But he did. He's a very good man. One of the best."

"Who ended it?" Hermione asked curiously.

Remus sighed. "It was me who finally broke it off. Sirius was pretty torn up about it. He still accuses me of being afraid of my feelings. You see, most of the relationship was wonderful, but it was complicated as well. I am a werewolf. He is a Black. Things were hard. Finally, James helped us to fix things between the two of us, after all, we couldn't just stop being friends. And in the end, we both moved on to better things. In Sirius's case it was James, and for me, it was a pretty fourth year—

"Girl?" Hermione interrupted yet again.

Remus looked at her. "Yes." He said after a moment. "Cynthia. Anyway, me and James had an off and on thing for a month, and then he moved on to Lily."

Hermione was still looking at him, shocked.

"We had rules of course," he continued. "After Sirius and I, we were more careful. We tried to end things mutually, and we ALWAYS ended up closer than before. And we're close to this day. Even James is here with us."

Hermione studied him.

"Harry deserves to be happy," she said finally.

"I agree completely. And there is already chemistry between the two of them. I don't doubt for a second that they couldn't be happy together."

"They just need a push in the right direction." Hermione finished.

Remus studied her this time.

"You have a plan."

Hermione smiled. "I do. I have two houses. One's by the shore, and my parents aren't using it right now. Let's go away to it. The Weasley's, Harry and I. We can go during spring break for vacation. And you and Sirius can chaperone! It would work out perfectly. They'd really get to spend some time together."

"You're crazy! Molly would never agree to that! She'd be concerned for your safety!"  
"She would if you suggested it! Please Remus? You know we deserve a vacation." Hermione looked at him with pleading eyes. It took about ten seconds to wear him down.

"Oh, alright. I'll bring it up with Molly. But I'm not promising you anything," he warned.

"Yay! Oh Remus, thank you!" She flung her arms around him, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. A couple of girls nearby giggled, and Remus looked at them, amused.

"You know. You hanging out with an ugly, old man like me is really ruining your rep," he said, smiling at her.

"First of all," Hermione said indignantly, "Do not insult my taste. You are not old, and you are most certainly not ugly. Did you even notice how all the girls were staring at you in the bar?"

Remus flushed slightly.

"And second of all. Who cares about my reputation?! Everyone knows that I'm hopelessly and stupidly in love with Ron, and that YOU are in love with Tonks."

Remus turned red.

"WHAT?!"

"Or at least…I know that you're in love with her." She said amusedly.

"How did you…?" Remus sputtered.

"I have a gift for these things," she replied.

"What don't you have a gift for?" he muttered amusedly. Hermione ignored him.

"We'll have to invite her too." She said thoughtfully.

Remus looked at her suspiciously.

"You have something up your sleeve," he declared. "This isn't going to be some innocent trip to a beach house is it?"

Hermione grinned at him.

"Alright, I best be going," he said. "You take care of yourself. And your rep. No matter how trivial it may seem." He bent down and kissed her on the cheek again, and then apparated on the spot.

Hermione strolled off to where she knew Harry would be, lost in thought.

"Once Mrs.Weasley approves, we'll have the perfect opportunity to set them up. I'll need a little bit of help, but I'll worry about that later. For now, at least I know that Harry and Sirius have a chance. Wow, I can't believe the three marauders all dated each other. Now that is something I didn't even consider! But I'm going to have to trust Sirius to love Harry for Harry, not because he's like James. I'm sure that'll be fine. Sirius is an honorable man afterall. And then there's that small matter of my rep. I know I'm more open now, more physical, but that's just because of the war right? War changes people. And I kind of like the person I've become. More confident. More strong. I've become a better person because of it. Right..?"

Hermione finally reached the shrieking shack, and looked around for Harry. She finally found him sitting on a huge rock, admiring the horrible sight of the shack. She approached him slowly, unsure of what to say. But he spoke up first.

"Took you long enough." His voice was light, and there was no bitterness.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't sure you'd want to see me."  
"And why is that?"

"Well…I don't know. I don't mean to act like you're my boyfriend. I'm sorry that Sirius got the wrong idea. Most of this is my fault."

Harry looked up at her, amused. Suddenly, he got up and closed the distance between them.  
"Hermione, none of this is your fault. If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I couldn't handle Sirius playing matchmaker and father at the same time. Especially when that's definitely not what I want from him. And besides. It's not our fault no one can see I love you like a sister. You said it yourself. Nothing is as important as the relationship between you and me. Nothing and no one can come between us. Not even Sirius."

"I love you too, Harry." Hermione grinned at him, and then gave him a hug. Then she led him towards the rock and pulled him down to sit next to her.

"We need to talk."

"About what?"

"About why you're avoiding Sirius."

"I am not!" Harry protested. Hermione gave him a pointed look.

"Okay fine, so maybe I am. But I can't let him know of my feelings! It'll become so awkward! I can't have that happen! He's too important to me!"  
"It's already awkward Harry! You couldn't even LOOK at him today and he KNOWS that. It's really bothering him! He thinks you hate him."

"But I don't! Of course I don't! You know that!"

"Yes, but he doesn't! You can't be afraid of your feelings Harry. You and him will never have a chance if you are!"

"I can't help it!"  
"I don't believe that. I think you're taking the easy way out!"  
"And so what if I am?! My other option is REALLY hard, Hermione! I'm in love with my DAD'S BEST MATE! Do you know how…WRONG that is?"

"Love is never wrong Harry! I know it's hard! But you can't just give up. You can't keep treating him like this."

Harry sighed and looked away.

"Harry, I know. I know this is really really hard for you, and I'm trying to understand as much as I can. But you have to promise me that you'll at least TALK to him like you used to. He misses you a lot, and he wants you to let him love you. Alright? So just promise me that you'll be more relaxed around him?"

Harry hesitated, and then nodded his head. Hermione smiled reassuringly at him and then they slowly began to make their way back to the castle.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day, as Harry and Hermione made their way towards her tutoring sessions with Malfoy, they ran into Ron Weasley, who was sitting on a ledge, looking out the window. He was holding a letter.

"Ron?" Harry asked tentatively. "Is something wrong?"

"Harry! Hermione!" he sounded startled and unsure. He jumped off the ledge with ease, and quickly put the letter in his pocket.

"How are you lot?" he asked after a moment.

"We're alright. And you?" Harry answered for Hermione as well, who was smiling hesitantly.

"I'm alright. Well. It's nothing really major. It's just that, Dad's having a relapse of that thing he had last year, with the snake bite. He's at St. Mungo's. It's really not that big a deal. Really." He said this all very fast, as if he was trying to convince himself of the truth of it. He seemed relieved to finally be telling someone.

"Ron! Why didn't you tell us?!" Harry exclaimed.

"I didn't want to worry you. It's really not that bad. Mum says he should be fine. That's what the doctors are saying too. It's just…I don't know. I don't have a good feeling about it all. It's stupid really. Me. Having feelings." He shook his head. Hermione studied him. He seemed a bit lost and confused.

"As if a major part of him was missing." Hermione thought to herself. "He misses us."

"Ron," she said gently, squeezing his arm. "You don't have to do this by yourself."

"Yeah well, you lot have your own things to worry about. Harry with the usual stuff, and Hermione with your tutoring sessions. We've all got our own problems to deal with. I don't want mine to become yours."  
"He's changed. He's become older, more mature." Hermione said to herself. "He's different, but it's a good different."

"THAT is the stupidest thing I've EVER heard." Harry said firmly. "Your problems are ALREADY our problems, and there's nothing you can do about. Now quit acting like a wanker, and hang out with us every once in a while."

"Like now for instance," chimed in Hermione. "Though I've got to get to Malfoy and the tutoring sessions."  
Ron was grinning like crazy by the time they finished.

"Yeah?" he asked hopefully.

"Yeah!" Harry and Hermione answered together.

"Well, I can't go now. I've got to answer this letter here from my mum. But tomorrow?"

"Of course Ron," Harry answered.

"Oh Merlin," said Hermione. "What's wrong with us? Since when do we have to make…appointments to see each other?! We're best mates. Ron, Harry, I'll see you in the common room. I've got to get going, I'm already late. But none of this awkwardness anymore alright? We're mates. There's no room for awkwardness," she lectured.

Harry and Ron exchanged glances, grinning.

"Come on, mate," Harry said, pulling on Ron's arm. "You have loads to catch up on."

Hermione watched them go, smiling to herself. Then she turned and hurried to the usual classroom.

When she reached the classroom, Malfoy was already there. He looked up when she entered, but didn't say anything. They stood their, facing each other for a moment, silently, until finally, Malfoy spoke up.

"Listen, Granger, I have things to do, so if we could just get this over with…"

Smiling inwardly, she nodded her agreement. They worked in near silence, speaking only when necessary. She demonstrated the wand movement for him, and he gave it right back to her quickly and easily. Then, when the goblet was transformed into a bird, he walked quickly out of the room.

The next few days were extremely…happy. Normal. Near perfect. Hermione was nearly always smiling. Ron spent more time with the group, though he didn't break up with Lavender. (The only downer in Hermione's life.)

Remus flooed to let her know that Molly had finally agreed to the vacation thanks to the persuasiveness of Sirius, Tonks, Remus, Mr. Weasley and Albus who agreed that the group needed it. Plans were being made to include the house in the floo network, allow the kids to perform underage magic while inside, and also to perform the necessary cloaking and protection spells around it to ensure safety, because as Molly pointed out several times, the children and Harry were sitting ducks if anything was to go wrong. She insisted that aurors be placed around the place, "just in case." At the end of the process, Albus ensured Ms. Weasley that the school would be as safe as Hogwarts.

Tutoring sessions with Malfoy became increasingly friendly as time went on. Although they never talked about anything substantial, Hermione learned a lot about him. She noticed that he never revealed any emotion in his face. His expression was masked behind his two deep, greyish blue eyes. He fidgeted quite a bit though, whenever he was nervous, angry or upset, but it was subtle things, never overly noticeable. It was an unusual trait for Hermione; she prefered her friends to be open with her. Harry and Ron wore their hearts on their sleeves. But Malfoy, he was a mystery, and the more time she spent with him, the more she was determined to help bring him over to the light. And Hermione always got what she want. Each day, she insisted on talking more with him. She asked him more questions, talked more about herself. It was light and unconsequential topics, but she had to start somewhere. And she was making progress. He was slowly but surely opening up to her, until one day, _everything_ changed.

She had also realized that he seemed to be slowly disappearing before her very eyes. He was becoming thinner and shabbier. His eyes lost their glow and become dull and tired. He no longer took care of his appearance. His hair stood up messily, and there were bags under his eyes. He looked like he hadn't slept in ages. On that particular day, Malfoy came in about 15 minutes late. He looked like he had run some distance to get there, and he tried and failed to catch his breath.

"Sorry…completely…forgot," he panted, leaning over, his hands on his knees to support himself. Hermione looked quizzically at him. They had been meeting five days a week for the past month. How could he just forget? She studied him carefully. Today he looked worse than she had ever seen him. He was pale and sweating, as if he was really scared about something. He was shaking slightly and he looked really, really thin. He truly looked like he could just collapse on the spot. And suddenly, he did.

Hermione instantly panicked.

"Draco!" she exclaimed, running to him. She knelt down on the floor, and gently shook him.

"Draco! Wake up!" He wouldn't stir. She took a deep breath, calming herself. Then, she felt his pulse breathing a sigh of relief when she found one. Then she conjured a bed for him, and levitated his body onto it. She knew that she wouldn't be able to bring him all the way to the Hospital Wing, and she was afraid to leave him alone, just in case. She made him as comfortable as she could, and then sat with him, hoping that he woke up soon.

About fifteen minutes later, Draco woke slowly.

"What happened? Where am I?" he asked out loud. He received no answer. He sat up slowly and looked around. Hermione was sitting at a desk in the far corner of the room, staring at him. Her face was devoid of any emotion, a mask.

"Granger? What happened?"

"You fainted." Draco shuddered. Her voice was cold and dettached. Nothing like the voice he was used to hearing from her. She stood slowly and walked out of the room, never looking back.

"Wait!" Draco said. "Thank you." He muttered to himself, as she walked out the door.

Harry met her outside the door.

"C'mon," she said, her voice as cold as before. She took his hand, and began dragging him quickly down the corridor.  
"Wait! Hermione! What's wrong? Where are we going?"

"To Dumbledore's office."

"Why? What happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. You were right. About Malfoy. We have to warn Dumbledore." She still walked fast, pulling him in the direction of the office.

"Hermione!" Harry shouted. "For godssake. Wait!"

Finally, she stopped and turned to him.

"Hermione," he said gently. "Dumbledore already knows! Remember what Remus said? They're working on turning him!"

"No! you don't understand Harry! He's a lost cause. He's plotting to kill!"

"Kill? Who?!"  
"Dumbledore! You! Students! Harry! He's planning to bring deatheaters into the school!" she said frantically.  
"Dumbledore already knows," Harry said softly. "He knows, I promise you. He's not going to let it happen."  
Hermione looked at him in shock.

"He's known this whole time?!" Harry nodded.

"What?! Why is he letting me teach him then? Why he letting me help the enemy?!"

"He wants to turn him, remember? Malfoy will be really valuable on our side."

"No. Malfoy is a LOST CAUSE. I refuse to teach him. I refuse to teach someone who wants to kill the people I love."  
"Oh, Hermione." He gathered her into his arms. "I hate the slimeball as much as you do. Don't worry. He won't be able to. He's not going to hurt you or me, or Ron or anyone. I promise. Dumbledore has the situation under control."  
"I won't teach him, Harry. I can't. Please don't make me."

He rocked her back and forth slowly. "Shh, it's okay. It'll be alright…"

The next day, Hermione was 15 minutes late for tutoring. She wouldn't have gone at all if it hadn't been for Harry freaking Potter persuading her that she had to keep up pretenses, or Dumbledore would be disappointed. (To which Hermione had promptly answered, "Screw him.")

When she walked in, he was there, with his back to her, looking out the window. He quickly turned around when he heard her. He looked miserable as usual, but this time, she swallowed the kindness she felt for him. She ignored his expectant look and sat in her usual seat, taking out her book to read.

"Granger?" Malfoy asked incredulously. "What's going on?" When she did not answer, he continued.

"What did I do now?"

She continued to ignore him. At exactly half an hour, she walked out of the room. The cold expression in her eyes never left them.

The rest of the week continued to be much of the same. In the beginning, Hermione remained cross at Harry, because he refused to let her quit teaching. But in the end, she forgave him, knowing that he had good intentions. Afterall, she was a pretty reasonable girl. She refused to budge with Malfoy, however, and by Friday, McGonnagall was waiting for them outside the regular room, in order to inform them that the charm on the door was back, and that they would not be allowed to leave until the spell was correctly performed.

Hermione stormed into the classroom, sat at her usual spot, and began to read. As usual. Malfoy just rolled his eyes and stood by the window, knowing that it would be futile to argue with her now. After an hour and a half of doing nothing, he became desperate. There were things that he really had to take care of, and they were not going to get done if he was wasting his time like this.

"Granger," he said persuasively. "I'm sure you want to get out of here as much as I do. Just teach me the spell, and we can both go our own separate ways." She looked up at him, her eyes were cold and her expression blank. She said nothing.

"Please, Granger. I have loads of work to do," Draco said, losing patience. When she still did not say anything, he became impatient.  
"JUST SHOW ME THE FUCKING SPELL!" he shouted at her. She looked up again, and Draco realized there was a hint of a smile on her features.

"She's enjoying this," he realized. "She loves that she's making me frustrated and miserable."

He took a deep breath to control his emotions, and then said quietly.

"Come on Granger, you're being really unreasonable." Her head snapped up.

"I'M being unreasonable?" she snarled suddenly. There was anger in her voice, but at least it was SOME emotion, rather than the cold, dettached voice she normally used with him. She continued, her voice growing louder with each word.

"You think me refusing to teach someone who is planning on bringing death eaters into school to kill all that I love is UNREASONABLE?" Draco winced.

"Yes, that's right, Malfoy," her voice full of venom. "Your secret is out."

"How did you…?" he stammered.

"You talk in your sleep Malfoy," she replied, bitingly. Draco paled at this. She walked forward slowly, taking a step with each word.

"Do you really think, that I'm going to help you? After all that you've done? I can't even stand LOOKING at you. If it wasn't for Harry I wouldn't even be here. If it wasn't for the fact that the spell needs to be performed…" she trailed off thoughtfully. "Wait a minute…Maybe if I…Right. Turn around," she ordered Malfoy.

"What…? Why?" Malfoy was afraid that she would hex him.

"Turn around NOW" she said, brandishing her wand threateningly. He hastily followed her orders. When his back was to her, she quickly performed the spell so that he couldn't see it, and then walked straight into the door.

She was thrown backwards with a bang. Draco had no time to react, and even if he did, he wouldn't know what to do. He turned around just as he heard her hit the wall with a sickening thud.

"Hermione! Goddamnit." He knelt beside her. He wasn't a medic, but he knew enough to find her pulse, and realized that she was just knocked out. He picked her up bridal style, and then realized that he didn't know what to do after that. In the end, he sat on the teacher's desk, with her in his lap, in at attempt to make her more comfortable.

She looked peaceful in sleep, and Draco realized with a start that she was beautiful. Her body was pliant against his, and when he studied her, he noticed that she had filled out in all the right places. Her eyes were closed delicately and her lips were open slightly, and he suddenly had the urge to kiss her. He imagined that she'd take control like she always did, and that he would love her for it. She would be demanding and impatient and passionate, and he would struggle to keep up with her, but in the end it would be he who dominated. He who made her moan and whimper with desire. He who made her panties wet with need and desire. He imagined touching her breasts and teasing her nipples. He imagined touching her and making her twist and writhe with need. He imagined her begging him to touch her, begging him to fuck her.

With a jolt, Draco realized he was hard. Achingly hard. He tensed. What if Hermione woke up and found him like this? He tried to will away his erection, but it was no use. He could not avoid feeling her warmth radiate from her, or her pliant body in his arms.

Suddenly, Hermione's eyes fluttered open and she found herself staring right into Draco's grey ones. She jumped a little in surprise, and Draco willed himself not to groan in both pleasure and dismay. Hermione had landed right on his erection, and the pressure was unbearable. Then Hermione's eyes widened in realization and she scrambled off his lap.

"How could you?" she whispered. Her eyes radiated fear, and Draco's heart broke with her every word. Tears slipped silently down her face.

"What have I ever done to you? Why are you doing this to me? How could you?" She began to sob quietly. She was slowly backing away from him and when she hit the corner, she sank to the floor and pulled her knees to her chest.

"Hermione," his voice was pained. He took a step forward.

"No! Stay away! Don't touch me!" she panicked. And Draco felt as though he had been punched in the gut. She was scared of him. She thought he was a monster.

"Hermione, I'm sorry, please…" he choked out.

"No," her voice wavered. "No. Just. The spell. It goes like this." She demonstrated through her tears. "Now please just leave me alone, just leave me alone. Please I'm begging you, just go away."

She looked…broken. Draco, more than anything in the world, wanted to go to her, pull her to him, protect her, put her back together. But he knew it would be futile. He quickly said the spell, tranfiguring the wool into barbed wire, and then ran out the room

**A/N: **I know this is an awkward place to end it, and I'm sorry, but if I don't end it here, you won't get another chapter up for ages. Don't worry, Draco'll find a way to fix this, I promise.

I just wanted to take the time to thank you have reviewed. They were well appreciated. Thank you very much. Those of you who haven't reviewed, please, do. Thank you! hugs I love you all! 3


	4. Chapter 4

Draco Malfoy sprinted down the hallway

Draco Malfoy sprinted down the hallway. Why was it, he thought to himself, that the one time he needed to find Potter, he was nowhere in sight?

Finally, he ran into Ron Weasley.

"Weasley," he panted. "Where's Potter?"

Ron, who was with Lavender, responded harshly.

"And why should I tell YOU?"

Draco bit back a retort. This was stupid. The more time he wasted arguing with the Weasel, the more time Hermione suffered. But for once, luck was on his side. Harry came up from down the corridor.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Potter. Granger's in trouble. She needs you," Draco's voice was clinical, and his eyes held no emotion. Harry didn't know what to think.

"It's a trap Harry, don't listen to him." Ron said, crossing to Harry, and standing defensively.

"No. It's not. I'm telling the truth."

Ron snorted, but Harry held up a hand.

"No it's alright, Ron," he said. "It makes sense what he's saying. After all, he was the last person to see her. And anyway, even if he isn't lying, it's nothing I can't handle." He wasn't speaking arrogantly, he simply stated the truth, and Draco had a fleeting sense of admiration. He shook himself.  
"Get a grip Draco. You are already calling Hermione by her first name. You can't afford to start admiring Harry. I mean Potter. I mean. FUCK. My father had better not come to know about this. I have to work on my occlumency, or I'm dead."

"Come on," he said out loud. He grabbed Harry's hand and ran down the hallway.

When they reached the threshold of the classroom, Malfoy stood in the doorway, and motioned for Harry to enter. Harry peered into the classroom, and when he saw the state Hermione was in, he grabbed two fistfuls of Draco's shirt and slammed him against the door. Hard. Draco hid his grimace.

"What the FUCK did you do to her?" his eyes flashed and his voice was menacing. Draco's eyes were cast downwards, and he said nothing.

"Tell me!" He slammed him against the door again. Draco had never seen Harry more angry. He started to talk.

" Hermi – Granger hasn't been teaching me anything and McGonagall noticed so she charmed the door again so we couldn't leave without performing the spell. Granger remained stubborn for a good hour, and then finally she got the idea that maybe if SHE performed the spell the charm would break. She had me turn around and she said spell and tried to leave. But it didn't work. She hit the wall with a bang and was knocked unconscious. I was too slow to react, and then I didn't know what to do. I wanted to make her more comfortable, so I…kind of held her…in my lap." Harry raised his eyebrows, and Draco blushed.

"Go on," Harry said roughly. Draco blushed even harder.

"My body started to react to her," he mumbled, embarrassed. "I became hard." He was looking down and his voice was unsteady. "She's so beautiful," he whispered to himself after a moment.

Potter had an amused look on his face when Draco looked up.

"That she is," he said, with a half-smile. Draco nodded slightly.

"When she woke up, she found me hard. She panicked. She thought…" his voice broke. "She thought I was taking advantage of her. She was afraid of me. She showed me how to do the spell and then she told me to get out. So I came to find you." Potter remained quiet for a minute, assessing him. Draco felt like he was being sized up under the intense stare of Potter's eyes. He knew that he didn't look like much. He was pale and weak and thin, and there were bags under his eyes from lack of sleep. He looked like shit.

"Get out of here, Malfoy," Harry said finally. There was no anger in his voice, only sadness. He let go of Malfoy's shirt and pushed him slightly out of the way. Then he closed the door in his face. He stared into Draco's eyes for second, and then crossed the floor to sit behind Hermione.

"Shh, it's alright Hermione, I'm here." He rubbed her shoulders gently, and pulled her back slightly so she was sitting on this lap, her back to his chest. He held her quietly, and then looked over her shoulder to see Malfoy watching through the door in the window. He nodded slightly at him, and watched as he turned and left. Then, he went back to comforting Hermione.

Initially, Hermione thought that her world had stopped, that she would not be able to move on. She felt dirty and violated, and she hated herself for being weak. But as always, it takes a more powerful force to stop time, and so a few days passed, and life went on. She concentrated on her studies, and in her spare time she clung to Harry and Ron. She knew she was being silly, and weak, but assured her soothingly that everything was alright, and that she was allowed to show a little weakness every once in awhile. She stopped tutoring sessions with Malfoy completely, and Harry did not try to tell her otherwise. She would not look at Malfoy or talk to him, even though he was making it surprisingly difficult. He was constantly but gracefully trying to apologize to her. He tried stopping her on her way to the common room, tried to catch her eye in class, even sent her a single beautiful rose with a note attached saying "I'm very sorry, Hermione" which was the talk of much of the Gryffindor table that day. Whatever he tried was of no use however. She swiftly ignored all his attempts.

On the Thursday after "The Incident," Ron, Lavender, Hermione and Harry were walking back out of the Great Hall when they came face to face with Pansy Parkinson and her group of slytherin girls.

"Oiii Granger!" she taunted. "What's got you down eh? Potter refuse to shag you just like the Weasel?" Instinctively, Ron and Harry stepped in front of her, their hands on their wands, Ron's face red with anger. But Hermione shoved them aside and pulled out her own wand. She stood threateningly.

"What are going to do about it Granger? Bite me to death with your buck teeth?" she mocked, her friends laughing cruelly. Suddenly her voice changed. "Oh Dracoo," she crooned. "You're just in time."

The trio and Lavender turned to see that Draco Malfoy had come up from behind them. He stood in front of them facing Pansy and spoke quietly.

"Stay the fuck away from them Parkinson." There was a hardness in his voice, and Pansy gaped at him.

"You heard me," his voice rising, his hand going to his wand. "I said, stay the fuck away from them."

Pansy shut her mouth and turned on her heel abruptly. When she and her friends were gone, Draco turned to the trio.

"I'm sorry," he said. And though he spoke to all of them, he had eyes only for Hermione.

The trio and Lavender stood in silence for a moment, trying to process what had just happened. Malfoy? Go against his ex-girlfriend and his friends and his HOUSE to defend THEM? Gryffindor? Mudbloods? Weasleys? Harry Potter?

Harry was the first to speak.

"Ron, Lavender, if you'll excuse us, Hermione and I need a moment." Hermione looked at him confused, but he was looking at Ron, communicating silently to him. Finally, Ron nodded, and he led Lavender down the hall towards the common room.

Harry took Hermione's hand and pulled her in the opposite direction, towards the Grounds.

"Hermione," Harry began, when they were sitting outside their favorite tree. The weather and warmed and it was beautiful outside. Harry was silent for a moment, unsure of how to say what was on his mind.

"He's trying. He's trying REALLY hard," he said finally. She nodded, wordlessly.

"I'm sure this is really difficult for him," he continued. "He's scared, nervous and upset. And very sorry. Anyone can see that. Even RON can see that, and we all know how insightful he is."

Hermione laughed a little in agreement, and Harry grinned, relieved at her laughter.

"I know you're not a stubborn or unreasonable person. I think it's time you let him off the hook. I think he's earned it." Hermione's expression was unreadable, and for a minute Harry was worried that she was angry. Finally, she spoke.

"I can't believe the way things are turning out. One day you're so suspicious of him, and the next, you're convincing me to forgive him." Harry nodded nervously, still unsure of whether she was angry or not. When she made no attempt to continue, he plowed on.

"If you don't want to accept him as a person, think of him as a mission. The Order could really use his information and his skills, as Dumbledore is constantly reminding me. You're really important to him, Hermione. I'm sure you could turn him if you wanted to. Make it your mission." Hermione considered him for a moment.

"I'll do what you ask," she said agreeably, "but I can't promise anything. I'm sure I'll always be the Mudblood to him." She said the word with a bitterness, but Harry smiled. He had a strong feeling that she wouldn't be thinking like that for long. Not if Draco had anything to say about it.


	5. Chapter 5

Hermione walked slowly to the "usual classroom"

Hermione walked slowly to the "usual classroom". She wanted to be at least ten minutes late, because she most definitely did not want to be stood up by the person she thought had raped her.  
"Twisted, isn't it," she said to herself. "My life is slowly but surely turning upside down. I should be focusing on my schoolwork, and making Harry happy with Sirius. I shouldn't be having anything to do with Malfoy." She sighed loudly. "And what makes Harry think he's going to show anyway?" Harry was convinced that Malfoy came by their room at the usual time everyday and waited for half an hour hoping that she would show up.

"There's no way in…" she almost groaned aloud. There he was, at the window, his back to her. When he heard her, he whipped around.

"Hermione…" he looked relieved. She quirked her eyebrows.

"That's new," she said, almost amused. ALMOST. He didn't miss a beat; he knew exactly what she was talking about.

"It's not, really," he responded. "I've been calling you that in my head for awhile now."

Hermione was confused, but she could not resist the smile playing on her lips at his honesty. Even though his eyes were masked, his voice was truthful.

"Listen, I want to…"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she interrupted, waving her hand impatiently. "I know. You're sorry for what you did. You feel terrible. Etc. Etc. Etc."

"…take you out for lunch," he finished with a slight smirk.

"Wait…What?" Hermione was utterly bewildered. She wondered whether it was one of his tricks.

"Just hear me out, yeah? Before you get all suspicious," (It was uncanny how well he could read her, she thought to herself.) "I just…want to make it up to you. We can eat lunch during the Hogsmeade trip tomorrow. Of course, I'll have to make up some excuse to the rest of the Slytherins as to why I'm with you, if that's okay with you. I promise it'll be fun. Just, at least please consider it. I really feel bad about what happened. I really want to make it up to you."

Hermione was at a loss for words. She thought this was going to be a simple, I'm sorry let's be friends thing. But now he wanted to take her OUT? On a date?

"That's insane, Malfoy. I can't go out with you…" she trailed off in surprise. His face had changed at her words, and for once, there was expression in his eyes. Hurt. Saddness. Disappointment.

"Look," he muttered. "I know I look like shit nowadays and…"

"You KNOW that's not what this is about."

"Then what IS it about?"

"YOU'RE TRYING TO KILL ME MALFOY!" she yelled at him, frustrated. How could he not understand what she was thinking? "YOU are trying to find a way to bring death eaters into this school to kill everything and everyone that I love! Tell me, how can I go out with you?"

Malfoy looked just as frustrated.

"I told Harry this is how you would react." He muttered to himself.

"What?! What's going on here?" Hermione was so so so very confused, and frustrated, and CONFUSED.

"Nothing, I swear," Malfoy was clearly agitated now. He was fidgetting like crazy, and though his eyes attempted to block out any more emotion, frustration shined through. "I just want your forgiveness. What I did was terrible and embarressing, and I just want to prove to you that I'm better than that. I know what you're going to say. You'll say 'If you want to prove yourself, don't take the Mark, don't become a death eater.' I get it. But it's more complicated than you think. You have to believe me. I went to Harry when you started to avoid me. He told me that I should just try talking to you. We came up with this together. That I should take you out to eat. I told him you'd react like this but he was convinced that I would convince you to trust me. I know that you have a really low opinion of me, you always have. But give me a chance, please? I'm trying."

Hermione was silent for a moment.

"Malfoy…this isn't a good idea…"

"I'll make it worth your while, I promise." Draco said confidently, waving away her concern.

"Well…alright," Hermione said hesitantly.

"It's settled then," Draco's eyes shown bright with excitement, and again Hermione was taken aback by the sudden display of emotion.

"Tomorrow?" he asked. She nodded.

"It's a date." He grinned at her, and she raised an eyebrow in question. He flushed.

"I mean, it's not REALLY a date, but…oh you know what I mean." She laughed at his words, and he walked her to the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Hermione," he said sincerely. She looked up at him. He was standing so close to her, and she suddenly realized how much taller he was than her.

"Good bye Mal – Draco." He beamed in pleasure at her, and she almost laughed. He looked so…happy.

She turned and walked away, looking over her shoulder to smile back at him.

When she rounded the corner Harry was upon her.

"Well?!" he asked expectantly. She shook her head at him, a smile playing at her lips.  
"Who would have thought the Boy-Who-Lived could be so sneaky!" she exclaimed. He grinned at her and took a bow.

"That's what I'm here for."

"Well…you're good at what you do, because for some unknown reason I've said yes." Harry let out a whoop of delight.

"YES! Point for Harry!" she laughed at his silliness.

"But I've got one condition," she warned, turning serious again. He nodded. "Don't tell Ron."

"What? Why? I thought we agreed to no secrets!"

"But Harry, think about it. For Ron, this thing with Malfoy runs deeper than good or evil. Think about how the Malfoys have treated his family. His father tried to kill his sister, and almost succeeded. And out of all of us, Ron gets the most heat from Malfoy. Ron will take it personally that I'm going out with him. You know Ron." Harry looked at her skeptically.

"Please?" she begged.

"Fine," he said. "I'll do my best. But it'll be difficult. I'll have to think of an excuse as to why you're not hanging out with us this weekend."

"Just say that I'm studying or something," Hermione said. "It's not that hard. Hogwarts is a big school."

Harry nodded.

"Alright," he paused. "So…have you thought about what you're going to wear?!" Hermione laughed.

"You're such a ponce, Harry!"

"Hey! That's not funny!" She shrieked and ran down the hallway as he chased after her laughing.

It was agreed that they would meet outside of the Great Hall after everyone was well on their way into town.

Harry and Ron left her in the Common Room with a book in her lap, Harry secretly winking at her as he closed the portrait behind them. As soon as they left, Hermione bolted up the dormitory stairs. She put on a simple sun dress, tied up her hair, and then, after checking her reflection in the mirror and grinning, satisfied, she made her way down to the Great Hall.

Draco was the only one left outside of the Great Hall, and when he saw her his face broke into a genuine smile.

"You look…great," he said and offered her is arm. Hermione couldn't help but grin at the irony of it. (A Malfoy offering his arm to a Mudblood?!), but she took his arm and he led her down the steps and towards the Forbidden Forest.

"Where are we going?" she asked, confused. She had assumed that he would take her to Hogsmeade.

"You'll see," he said with a grin.

When they reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest, and Draco began to enter the wood, she began to get a little nervous.

"Malfoy…"

"Back to Malfoy, now?" He sounded hurt. She ignored him.

"We're not allowed to go into the Forbidden Forest."

"Scared?" he taunted playfully. She stared back apprehensively, then touched her wand slightly, as if to make sure it was still there.

"You wish," she said finally.

He led the way into the tree, and Hermione noticed a large Thestral tied to a nearby tree. He made his way toward it, and slowly stroked his mane.

"You can see them?" she asked in surprise. Draco let out a bitter laugh, but he didn't respond. He remained silent for a few heart beats, then finally spoke.

"He's the easiest mode of transportation that I know of. Come on." He climbed up onto the Thestral's back, and then helped her up behind him.

"Hold on," he instructed. She hesitated, and then wrapped her arms tightly around his torso. He smiled to himself.

"How come you aren't surprised that I can see them?"

"I know what happened at the Ministry of Magic last summer," he stated matter of factly. He kicked the beast lightly in the ribs, and it broke into a fairly fast gallop. Hermione put her head against his back to avoid the branches of the many trees, and Draco loved the sensation of it. It felt right – at least to him.

Finally they reached a small clearing. Draco stopped and gracefully jumped off, then he helped her off gently. When they stepped into the clearing, Hermione let out a tiny gasp.

"Oh Draco, it's beautiful!" she exclaimed.

"And it's back to Draco," he said, laughing triumphantly. Hermione rolled her eyes playfully at him. The small clearing was full of flowers of different colors and sizes: some were as large as Hermione's hand, and some were as small as her finger nails. They gave the clearing a mystical, romantic air, and Hermione blushed slightly at the thought. In the center was a table set for two, with candles that were spelled to stay lit despite the wind. Draco took her hand and led her to the table, pulling out her chair for her and gesturing for her to sit, graceful as ever.

"We can eat now, if you'd like."

"And what is for lunch?" she asked curiously.

"For lunch, we will be having homemade soup, salad, and steak," he explained in a ridiculously pompous manner, winking at her.

"Homemade as in house elves?" she asked, giggling slightly.

"Of course not! Prepared by yours truly!" he said indignantly. She raised her eye brows at this, and he relented.

"Fine, I'm lying. I would have cooked for you, but it was such short notice!"

"You can cook?" He gave her a small smile.

"Guilty pleasure," he explained. "The house elves used to teach me when my father wasn't around."

Hermione nodded. She was beginning to realize that she knew far less about Draco than she had thought.

"So what about you?" he asked to break the silence. "How did you pass the time?"

"Well…I can't cook for the life of me," she laughed. "I used to take loads of dance lessons though."

"You dance?" he asked incredulously.

"Well…you cook!"

He laughed. "Touche"

"Come on," he said after a heartbeat, "Dance with me!" He stood up and bowed slightly, offering her his hand.

"Oh Draco, I couldn't," she protested. "It was a long time ago, and besides, there's no music."

He shook his head at her and then with a slight wave of his wand, a slow waltz began to play.

"Come on," he urged her.

"Well…alright," she said, and took his offered hand. They danced together for sometime. He held her close and they slowly stepped to the beat. She looked up and found that he was watching her, smiling slightly. His eyes were captivating. It was amazing that when he wanted to, his eyes could give her no hint as to what he was feeling, but now, they shined with so much emotion. She looked into his eyes, and found herself unable to look away. Suddenly, the feeling became too intimate for her, and she pulled away slightly.

"So, where did you learn to dance?" she asked, clearing her throat slightly. He shrugged.

"It's a pureblood thing," he said, and then he winced. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that the way it sounded."

"No, it's alright. I'm used to it anyway," she said, trying to feign indifference. He looked down, and the silence was awkward.

"Anyway," she said, trying to set things right again. "You're a wonderful dancer. I've got…or I had a dance partner at home, but he doesn't even compare. You seem like you've been dancing your entire life."

He chuckled slightly. "Since I was three. I used to loathe it. But then, when I realized how much it helped with the ladies, and I didn't mind it so much." He grinned at her, and when her heart leaped at it, she realized that she'd never really get used to his sudden displays of emotion. His smile had her hypnotized. "This is bad," she thought to herself. "You're in way to deep already, and this isn't even a date."

"Come on," she said outloud. "Let's eat." And she pulled away completely.

They ate in silence, but it was no longer awkward. Instead, she felt like they were a pair of life long friends, sitting for a meal.

"So, tell me about your life before you got the letter," he said suddenly, curiously.

Hermione was surprised. "You want to know how I lived, as a muggle?" she asked.

He shrugged. "It's not going to poison me is it?" he asked, jokingly.

She chuckled. "I guess not…"

He looked at her expectantly.

"Well, alright. I had…a life. I had friends. We weren't all exactly alike, and we definitely weren't as close as Harry, Ron and I are, but we had fun together. I knew them through dance, so they were of all different ages, and the older ones used to look after the younger ones. We used to perform together, and hang out together, and even sometimes study together. We spent a lot of time on the beach, or at the mall…"

"What's a mall?" he asked.

She paused for a second. "It's kind of like Diagon Alley, in one building," she explained.

"Oh…that must be quite imressive," he said, "Go on."

She smiled slightly. "My parents were wonderful, I guess, but I don't think they really understood me. They didn't really understand that I wanted to be more of a dancer than a student…" she trailed off, realizing that she hadn't talked about this with anyone since she got her letter, six years ago. It felt good to talk about it.

"The dance classes became more intense as I got older. I was spending all my time at the studio, and my grades began to slip. My parents, they're both doctors. They didn't really understand about art, or music, or dance. They told me that unless I picked up my grades, I'd have to drop classes. I picked up my grades slightly, but it wasn't enough." She laughed at Draco's shocked expression. "Yeah, Ms. Know-it-all wasn't always a know it all," she said, grinning. He laughed. "They made me stop classes. That was the summer before I got my letter. I was very young, and my parents thought that the change in the schools would be good for me. So they were happy, and I guess I was too. I felt like I had reached a dead end, in my old life, and the letter gave me a way out. It was nice. And I don't regret my choice to pursue witchcraft."

"You were given a choice?" he asked.

"Of course," she said, surprised that he didn't know. "Professor Dumbledore said not everyone choses to come to Hogwarts. In fact, about half of them don't. I think they're obliviated, and their magic is subdued, so as not to reek havoc in the muggle world. You know?"

"I didn't know…" Draco said softly. "Imagine how different things would be for you if you had chosen not to come."

She smiled. "I don't look back Draco. There are some ups and downs here."

"Yeah, like you're life being threatened every once in awhile." He interrupted.

"It's worth it," she said firmly. "Magic is a part of me. I don't know what I'd do if that part was missing. I'd be incomplete."

"I'm glad you chose to stay in our world," he said after a heartbeat. She smiled and reached across the table to put her hand in his.

"I am too, Draco." He beamed at her (and of course, her heart skipped a beat.) They stayed like that for a minute or two, before Draco spoke enthusiastically.

"Come on," he said, pulling her up. "Let's go into town. We can stop the Three Broomsticks for some Butterbeer." She nodded, and they walked together in the direction of town. He didn't once let go of her hand.

At The The Three Broomsticks, seated at one of the tables for two in the corner, Draco and Hermione sat sipping butterbeers and laughing about something or the other.

When silence fell Hermione looked into Draco's eyes and smiled.

"I had a lot of fun today," she said softly. He nodded.

"Told you so," he said, smirking slightly. Her gaze fell to his lips, and she could feel herself involuntarily leaning closer, until their lips were almost touching…

"What the bloody hell are you doing Malfoy?!" Ron shouted angrily. Harry was trailing behind him looking apologetic. Draco pulled away abruptly, his hands clenched, and his eyes once again returning to their usual mask like state.

"We could ask you the same question," she retorted just as angrily.

"YOUR'E not supposed to be in here with this bastard," Ron declared, his face was red and he looked livid.

"YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO TELL ME WHO I CAN AND CANNOT SEE. I DON'T RECALL MYSELF TELLING YOU OFF ABOUT LAVENDER!" Hermione was screeching, and Harry quickly cast the _Muffliato_ spell around their table, so no one else could overhear.

"THAT'S BECAUSE LAVENDER ISN'T THE SON OF A BLOODY DEATH EATER!" Ron shouted right back.

"RON! That was uncalled for," Harry protested, and Ron rounded on him.

"YOU KNEW ABOUT THIS DIDN'T YOU?! HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN?"

"Actually, this was his idea in the first place," Hermione cut in. "Now just let it alone, alright Ron? You've already ruined everything anyway. Just ignore him Draco." Her voice was tired and exasperated.

"No, it's alright, I'll go." He swiftly pulled out money to leave on the table for the Butterbeers, and began to walk away. "Thanks for a wonderful time, Hermione," he said softly over his shoulder, and then he left the store.

"I'm sorry Hermione," Harry said softly to her. Ron ignored them. There was silence for a moment, where they were afraid to look at each other.

"Since when has Malfoy turned from our enemy to dateable material for Hermione?" he asked outloud to no one, throwing his hands up in the air in frustration.

"Just let it go, Ron." Harry said putting his hand on his shoulder and steering his two best friends out of the Pub.


	6. Author's Note

Hi guys,

Hi guys,

This is just a note to thank all of you who have been sticking with the story since the very beginning.

I just want to let you know that I AM still writing, but this chapter is taking me a little longer than usual, and with all the vacation that I had and stuff I've hardly gotten time to write.

So don't worry, don't lose faith. The next installment will be coming soon. And **please, please, please** don't forget to leave a comment. )

Yours, snuffleslove


	7. Chapter 6

The next day, Hermione and Ron were still not speaking, and Harry was left to find peace between the two of them

The next day, Hermione and Ron were still not speaking, and Harry was left to find peace between the two of them. It did not help that Hermione kept saying that she needed to find Draco immediately and set things right, and Harry tried to convince her that she needed to give him space, but then SHE got angry with HIM too and stormed off to the library.

A few hours later, she suddenly appeared in the common room again.

"Will you take me to Dumbledore's office Harry?" she asked, politely.

Harry looked up from where the boys were playing a game of Wizard chess to look at her in surprise.

"Why?" he asked curiously. She shrugged.

"I have to ask him something," she said vaguely. Harry and Ron glanced at each other; they both knew that something was up. Finally, Harry agreed, and he led her out of the common room, throwing another confused glance at Ron over his shoulder on the way out.

When Hermione returned to the Common Room about an hour later, she refused to disclose any information to the boys. She assured them that they'd find out soon enough and then retired to the girl's dormitory.

"You don't think she's planning on canceling the trip because of me do you?" Ron said anxiously to Harry after she had left. The whole group was ecstatic about spending Spring Break at Hermione's cottage by the sea, and Ron knew that her canceling the trip only a week before would leave everyone heartbroken.

"No, no, of course not," Harry said assuredly, "She wants to go on this trip as much as the rest of us, and it WAS her idea." Ron looked relieved. "Besides, I have a feeling she's got some big plans for the week. She's definitely hiding something. Every time I ask her about, she gets all vague and distant. I just know she's got something up her sleeve."

Ron laughed. "It's going to be an extremely interesting week"

And Ron was most definitely right.

The next day, Hermione met Draco in the usual tutoring classroom. His eyes were masked again, but she knew enough about him to guess that he was as nervous as she was. She wasn't sure where they stood. Were they friends? Something more? She was positive that she hadn't just imagined their 'almost-kiss'. So what did that mean? She stood there looking at him awkwardly, before finally, she mustered up the courage to speak.

"I'm sorry," she said, "for the fiasco on Saturday. I didn't want it to happen."

"It's not your fault," he responded instantly. "I understand."

"So…" she hesitated. "What now?"

"I…" he faltered for a second. "Maybe we should just continue with the tutoring session."

"Alright," Hermione agreed, somewhat disappointed. But she quickly shook herself. After all, what was she expecting anyway? For him to profess his undying love for her? "Get real," she told herself firmly. "Like I told Harry before, I'll always be the Mudblood to him. And sure, last Saturday was fun, but he paid his debt. Now, it's back to business."

She read the assignment book and rolled her eyes slightly. Turning barbed wire into a rose? Whose actually going to NEED that spell later on in life?

"Here, like this," she demonstrated first with her wand, and then said the spell along with the movement; it was a slightly trickier spell, but she assumed that he'd have no problem with it.  
Apparently not– he attempted the spell, but the piece of barbed wire did not change.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. He looked rather distracted.

"It's alright," she said patiently. She demonstrated again, but again his attempt failed.

"Here, try this," she closed the distance between them and put her hand to his wrist, slowly guiding his hand in the movement of the spell. But again, he tried and failed to produce a rose.

"I'm sorry," he said again, obviously distracted now. His face was flushed slightly.

"What's wrong?" she asked softly. He shook his head.

"Nothing," he insisted.

"Oh, please Draco, it's obvious something is bothering you. Will you please just tell me what it is?"

"It's nothing…" he trailed off. She gave him one of her best 'no-nonsense' looks.

"It's just," he took a deep breath. "It's just, I'm finding it really hard to concentrate on the spell when all I want to do is slam you against the wall and kiss you senseless," he said, extremely fast, looking down.

Hermione looked at him, shocked. That was not what she was expecting, at all.

"Well, do it then," she heard herself say, surprising even herself. Where had this boldness come from?

He looked up at her quickly with a startled expression.

"I…I can't," he said confusedly.

"Why not," Hermione challenged.

Draco shrugged. "I see the way you look at him," he said slowly.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Save it, Draco. Harry and I aren't…"

"No, not Harry," he cut her off. "Ron."

Again, he had her speechless with his words. How did he seem to see her in a way that no one else did other than maybe Harry? How was it possible that he could notice and remember so much about her? It was insane.

"I'm not going to wait for him forever," she said softly. "I can't and I won't. Do it. Kiss me."

This was all the encouragement he needed. He quickly and gracefully (of course) closed the distance between them and pressed his mouth urgently to hers. He kissed her like he'd been dreaming about. And it was everything he had imagined it would be. She was controlling and demanding and she kissed with a passion that he had never experienced before. She was incredible. But he couldn't allow that for long: he was, after all, a Malfoy. He quickly changed the angle of the kiss, nibbling at her lower lip, and demanded entrance to her mouth. His tongue battled with hers for dominance, and in the end of neither of them won. Panting, he pulled away. He rested on hand on her waist, and leaned on his other hand beside her head on the wall. She had both her hands on his chest, and she too was panting hard.

He quickly got control of his breathing, and moved away from her. She didn't realize what he was doing until he grabbed his wand. For one insane moment she was frightened that he was about to hex her, but she realized her fear was for nothing. He murmured the spell correctly, changing the barbed wire into a beautiful red rose. Then he quietly handed her the rose with a flourish and began walking toward the door.

When Hermione looked back on this day, she realized that this was one of the most crucial moments of her life. Maybe an earlier Hermione would have let him walk out and never look back, but not this new one. This new Hermione, made stronger by the war, knew that if you wanted something, you had to fight for it. She would not let him walk out. She would not let him leave her, especially when kissing him made her feel alive and whole. She wanted him to kiss her again and again and again and never let her go. And so, instead of letting him rush out the door, she grabbed his hand to stop him, prevent him from leaving.

His eyes were masked, and she had no idea what he was thinking, but she plunged on.

"The Weasleys, Harry and I are going away for Spring Break. I was wondering, whether you'd like to…join us. I've already cleared it with Dumbledore." She watched his expression apprehensively, hoping to catch a glimpse of what was going on in his head.

"Do you really want me there?" he asked finally, tentatively.

She nodded eagerly. "Yes, of course. I wouldn't ask if that wasn't the case."

"I don't know Hermione," he said hesitantly. "My father, he might call for me during the break. Then what?"  
"Dumbledore has an answer to this," she replied fast. "He says that since the house we'll be staying at will be connected to the school through the Floo Network, he'll stall Lucius until he can alert us and bring you back to the school. It'll be like you never left. And I'm sure you'll be able to find an excuse to stay at school during the holidays."

Draco looked at her disbelievingly.

"I don't understand. Why would you ask me? We're not exactly on the best terms."

She shook her head. "No, we're not. But I'd like to be. I had a great time this Saturday Draco. I want us to be friends. That is, if it's okay with you."

He looked at her for a long moment.

"Hermione…it's not a good idea. There are too many things that could go wrong."

"Yeah, or we could all have an amazing time, and you wouldn't have to be so miserable all the time." Draco looked at her, still not convinced. "Look," she continued, "just come to the meeting we're having today. It'll help you to make up your mind. Yeah?"

When he continued to look at her skeptically, she tried a different tactic.

"Please?" she asked, smiling slightly, and tilting her head to the side. He gave her a small smile despite himself.

"Well, alright," he said, "what harm could it do?"

She grinned triumphantly.

"It's at 9 o clock in Dumbledore's office," she said. "Don't be late, and don't bail. If you do, I'll know where to find you," she said, winking at him.

He gave a small laugh.

"Alright, fair enough."

They parted ways at the doorway of the classroom, pausing to glance back and smile at each other on the way.

When Harry met her as usual after the session, she took a deep breath and just blurted it out.

"I've invited Draco to come with us, to my house during spring break."

"That's great!" Harry said, without hesitation. "So that's why you went to Dumbledore's office yesterday."

"Ron's going to be okay with this right?"

"I'll talk to him," he said firmly. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine. I'm really glad you're doing this for him."

She smiled.

"Thanks, it means a lot."

He returned her smile and then crossed his arm through hers.

"So," she said, after a moment of silence, "Are you excited to see Sirius today at the meeting?"

He sighed. "I guess. I'm nervous. I've fallen so hard for him. I don't want to mess things up."

Hermione gave him an encouraging smile. "And you won't. Be yourself. It's good enough, I promise."

"Thanks Hermione."

"Come on, let's sit outside for a little bit."

She led the way outside and they sat under their favorite tree together in silence, watching the clouds. Finally, it was time to go inside for the meeting, so they left for Dumbledore's office.

When they got there, they were early, but already Ron, Ginny, and Draco were there. When Draco saw Hermione, he rounded on her.

"You didn't tell them I was coming?!" Ron was glaring at him heatedly.

"I'm sorry," she said, "there wasn't time. Ron, I've invited him. He's my friend and he could be yours too. Now please, the both of you, be nice. I promise everything will work out, and we'll have a lot of fun."

"Yeah!" said Fred and George, coming up behind her and Harry. "Draco'll keep things interesting. Won't you Draco?" They were taunting him, and he said nothing.

"Come on guys," Harry said quietly. "We've had rough starts, but this week is supposed to be about relaxing and having fun."

"You think we'll be able to manage that with HIM around?" Ron said incredulously.

"Oh Ron, shut up. Hermione IS the one planning this," replied Ginny nonchalantly. "She has the right to invite who ever she wants."

"Thanks Ginny," said Hermione relieved. Now there were two people on her side. They were even.

"This bloke's FAMILY is responsible for your NIGHTMARE during your first year. They almost killed you," Ron yelled at her. "How can you forgive him?!" Draco looked like he was about to defend himself, and then decided the better of it. Though he kept his hands clenched at his sides.

"Don't be so dramatic, Ron," Ginny said. "Besides, I find that it's easy to forgive gorgeous blokes like him," she added playfully, winking at Draco in a silly way. He grinned back, blushing slightly. Hermione, Harry and even the twins laughed at her joke. Ron flushed.

"In all seriousness," Ginny continued, "If he's good enough for Hermione, he's good enough for me, and he should be good enough for you, alright?"

Ron studied her, and then slowly nodded his head.

"Good! I'm glad that that issue is resolved," said a cheerful voice from behind them. Albus Dumbledore stepped into his office, followed by a annoyed looking Severus Snape.

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting, and I apologize even further because I must keep you waiting once more. I need to discuss some things with your Professor here, but I won't be long. And in the mean time, Remus, Sirius and Molly will be arriving by floo. I'm sorry to report that Tonks could not make it. Please, make yourself at home. Oh, and feel free to have a lemon drop." And with a swish of his robes, he left the room with Snape.

The group sat on the couches by the fireplace to wait: Harry, Draco and Hermione on one side, and the Weasley's facing them. They didn't have to wait long. Remus Lupin was the first to arrive. He looked, worse than usual, which was really saying something. It appeared as if he hadn't slept in days and he was sporting a few awful looking scars on his neck and face.

As if on cue, everyone stood up to welcome him, even Draco, and he looked around the room as if surprised to receive such an honor.

"Good to see you, Remus," Hermione said quietly, when it became apparent that no one was capable of saying anything else. Everyone was too surprised by the condition he was in. Remus appeared to be thrown off by the quiet, but he recovered quickly and proceeded to go around the room, greeting everyone.

Finally, he reached Draco Malfoy.

"Ah, Draco," he said, holding out his hand. "You've changed quite a bit since I left you in class." But Draco never got to shake his hand because storming through the fire place was a very frazzled Sirius Black.

"Remus, I'm sorry, I…" he trailed off, noticing the audience. Remus looked away.

"Moony…" he said, walking towards him, but he was interrupted by Mrs. Weasley, who had just exited the fireplace in her own graceful way. When she saw that both the men were crowded around Draco, she approached him.

"Oh you must be Draco! It's good to meet you, but my, you look awful…"

"Yes, rather reminds me of someone else I know," Remus spoke up. His voice was flat, and Sirius turned away.

"Why don't you tell him," Remus taunted, in a voice the children had never heard him use before. He stared hard at Sirius's downcast face.

"Moony, don't, please," Sirius said, finally looking at him.

Remus acted as if he hadn't heard him.

"Why don't you tell him about the time that YOU starved yourself? Oh and while you're at it, maybe you should share about the time you tried to kill yourself as well!"

There were audible gasps around the room followed by a palpable tension. Everyone was rendered speechless. The two old friends stared at each other; Sirius's eyes were shining with hurt. Without a word, he turned on his heel and flooed away, without a single glance back.

Remus, as if coming out of a dream, made to follow him. "Sirius!" he called after him, his voice panicky.

"Remus, maybe it's for the best," Dumbledore said, "He needs some time."

Remus nodded, looking startled, and sat, in an almost trancelike state. Hermione and Harry exchanged worried glances. The meeting continued along, but to Hermione it seemed to crawl along. She wanted to rush over to comfort both Sirius and Remus as fast as she could. Dumbledore talked about the basic stuff: who would cook and clean, what time they would leave, what they could do, how much freedom they would have, how safe they would be, etc. At the end of the meeting, Dumbledore asked that Remus and Draco remain behind for further instructions. Hermione gave Draco an encouraging smile, but Remus refused to stay.

"I have to go back and see Sirius, I'm afraid that he'll…" he said. His voice held the same nervousness as before.

"Professor," Hermione interrupted, "If it's alright, I can go talk to him." Remus looked at her gratefully.

"Please sir, I'll be alright. And I'll take Harry with me."

"What?!" Harry said. "No, Hermione, I can't. I'm not good at this stuff at all." Hermione gave him a stern look, before turning to look back at Dumbledore imploringly.

"Very well, use the floo, and be home soon," Dumbledore said, his blue eyes twinkling. Hermione suspected he knew everything.

"Come on," Hermione said, grabbing Harry's arm. "I'll see you later, Draco." Draco gave her a small smile.

Once they had flooed to 12 Grimmauld Place, Hermione shoved Harry against the wall.

"You listen here," she whispered fiercely. "Sirius is hurt, he's in pain, and he's in trouble, and he needs you. You're the only family he's got left, and you have no right to abandon him in his time of need just because of your stupid feelings. So swallow your fear, and do what's right. This is no time to lose courage."

Harry looked away from her. "It's not that I don't WANT to help him. It's that I won't know what to say."

Hermione softened. "Sometimes," she said quietly, "you don't need words."

He nodded, and they continued up the stairs the his room, where she assumed she'd find him.

When they reached the room they knocked, and Sirius answered.

"Molly, I'm fine, really. No, I don't need anything, I'm not hungry. I just want…"

"It's not Mrs. Weasley, Sirius, it's us," Hermione called through the door, slowly pushing it open.

"Hermione? Harry?" Sirius hastily brushed away tears. "What are you doing here?" Sirius was sitting in a chair by the window looking very much alone.

"Remus got held up at school, so he sent us to see whether you were okay," Hermione said, sitting opposite him on the corner of the bed. Harry stood awkwardly to the side, not saying a word.

"Yes, that's just like Remus," Sirius said bitterly, turning away to face the window once more. Silence.

"So, are you going to start talking, or do I have to start asking questions?" Hermione asked after a moment.

"Hermione…"

"Don't Hermione me, Sirius. There's something bothering you. Talk to us. We're here to help."

"I…"

"Listen, we're not leaving until you do, alright?" Sirius still did not begin to talk. Hermione sighed.

"Why does he see such a resemblance between you and Draco?" she asked encouragingly. Sirius sighed.

"You know this story."

"Obviously not all of it."

"Fine. The year that I was supposed to take the mark was a mess. I refused to take the mark, so Voldomort threatened my friends. He has spies everywhere, you see. So I began to think life wasn't worth living anymore. I started skipping meals and I lost a lot of weight in a short amount of time. Finally, my father gave me what I thought was an ultimatum. Either I took the mark or my brother did. I didn't really get along with my brother, but no one wants that for their family. Everything got to be too much. So one day, I cut myself in the bathroom. Remus found me, lying close to dead on the floor. He doesn't have to say it, but I know that image haunts him to this day. I'm sure I looked awful. I just…it was too much, and I was blocking out my friends. I couldn't handle it without them. I was too weak on my own." His voice was flat, emotionless, as if he had told this story a thousand times.  
"You're not weak, Sirius," Hermione replied adamantly. "I'm sure none of us would have lasted as long as you did."

"I didn't want you to know," Sirius muttered, his voice shaky. There were tears in his eyes, and he had this faraway look on his face. It broke Harry's heart to see him like this.

"Sirius, we don't look at you any differently. We promise you. You are still the same brave, honest, great man that you always were to us," Hermione said firmly.

"Are you sure about that?" Sirius said, glancing at Harry, who had sunk to the floor, with his knees against his chest, and was now looking at anywhere but his godfather.

"Yes," Hermione replied quietly but confidently. "I'm sure. Tell me why Remus is bothered by this all now? It happened such a long time ago."

Sirius shrugged. "This whole Draco thing has brought it up again, and after our last mission…"

"What happened?"

"Well, long story short, Moony and I were living together with a colony of werewolves, trying to slowly convert them to the light. On the night of the full moon, Moony took his potion and went to join them. You see, it is their ritual to take the potion and roam the land as wolves. He trusted them, and so he didn't really protect himself. When he got back…you should have seen him: it was just, fucked up. Well, I guess you can imagine, you saw the way he looked at the meeting. And that's nothing. He has to wear full sleeves and trousers to cover all the fresh scars. The worst part was that he ignored my help. He just ran into his room and looked the door with every spell in the book. I tried everything to get through but it didn't work. So I had no choice but to wait, helplessly while he could have DIED on the other side of the door. It made me sick with anger. And I…did something foolish."

He trailed off.

"It's alright," Hermione encouraged softly.

"I went after them." Hermione gasped. "After the full moon I took my wand and just ran after them. When I found them…well, there were a lot of them and only one of me…you can imagine what happened. Luckily for me, a group of the younger werewolves, who actually supported Remus found me where they had left me to die. They brought me back to Remus, who healed me as best as he could. I don't think it was that bad: just a lot of blood and all that. It wasn't that big a deal anyway…"

"Not a big deal?" Hermione interrupted. Her voice was strangely high pitched. "NOT A BIG DEAL? You think that THROWING YOUR LIFE AWAY is NOT A BIG DEAL? Sirius I don't care how you lived before Azkaban, but now you cannot just throw your life away at every chance you get. There are people here whose own lives rely on yours. There are people who stop LIVING when you do!!"

Sirius looked angry and embarrassed to be yelled at by a young girl. "OH YEAH?!" he shouted defensively. "Like who?"

"LIKE ME!" shouted Harry from out of nowhere. He was on his feet and he looked so angry and hurt and upset. Both Hermione and Sirius could not think of anything to say. "You bloody selfish bastard. You think I'll be able to survive your death once more? It's obviously okay for you, because you'll be dead, so you won't have to feel anymore. But what about me? I have to continue on living without you! Have you even spared one SECOND to think about that before you stupidly rush off to fight a fight that you KNOW you cannot win? Goddamnit Sirius…"

Sirius was stunned into silence. Harry's chest was heaving, and his eyes shown bright with tears and when he looked at Hermione he saw that she had a small smile on her face. She nodded at him proudly as if to say, "I knew you could do it." He turned to Sirius.

"Listen, I know I haven't been the best at showing it, but you are one of the most important people in my life, and I could not be here if it wasn't for you…"

"I don't know what to say," Sirius muttered.

"Just…just remember that when you run into situations like the one you were in."

"Of course Harry. I never wanted to leave you. And I never will…" he was cut off by Harry throwing his arms around his neck and crushing him in an embrace. He smiled into Harry's hair, and hesitantly put his arms around Harry's waist pulling him closer. No one noticed Hermione silently leaving the room, but Harry did see that suddenly Remus had appeared in the doorway and was smiling slightly at the two of them. Harry pulled away from Sirius and spoke quietly. "I reckon there's someone else you have to apologize to," he said. Sirius turned to see who was looking at, and returned Remus's hesitant smile.

"Yeah," he answered quietly. "I reckon I do."

"It's alright," Remus said quickly, not wanting to interrupt. "We can talk later." But Harry insisted that he had to get back to the school, and after a final smile at the two of them, he left the room.

There was silence for a moment, while the two men looked at each other.

Remus was the first to speak. "Sirius, I'm sorry about…."

"No, wait. My apology first. When you came home that night, you looked awful. I thought you were dying, you could barely stand up. And then you shut yourself in your room…"

"I'm sorry, but I didn't want you to risk infection…" Sirius waved his hand as if to say, yes I understand.

"I've never felt to helpless in my life. I wanted to DO something to help you. Remus, I'd never leave you on purpose. I swear to you. There are a lot of things I'm unsure of, but you are definitely not one of them. You're my brother, my family, my closest friend and I would NEVER choose to abandon you. I'm sorry I ever gave you that impression."

Remus smiled, "And I am sorry for spilling your secret in front of everyone. It wasn't my place. It's just, seeing you like that, when the young werewolves brought you to me. It was just like when I found you, so many years ago. It brought up so much pain. And then seeing Draco…it just….I couldn't handle it."

Sirius laughed bitterly. "Yes, well, that's why you broke up with me in the end so…"

"Oh Padfoot. I'm so sorry." And Remus embraced him tenderly. When they pulled apart, Sirius was crying. He looked embarrassed at himself.

"Look at me, crying." He looked at Remus who was staring back, and amused expression on his face.

"Well, I guess it makes sense, seeing as you were the only one who really could make me cry," Sirius continued. Remus flushed slightly.

"We have a lot of baggage don't we?" He asked softly.

"Yeah, but we survive, and at a time like this…"

"That's all we could ever ask for," Remus interrupted firmly.

--

A/N: Hey guys, I'm sorry this chapter took so long. I hope it was worth the wait. As usual, reviews are EXTREMELY appreciated. They don't need to be long, just a couple of words on how you thought it was. Thank you for sticking with this. I'm really excited for future chapters. I have the story all planned out and I just need to write, so don't get frustrated, I'll still be posting. Thanks again for reading and don't forget to visit my LJ! –Snuffleslove


	8. Chapter 7

The rest of the week crawled by for everyone

The rest of the week crawled by for everyone. Everyone was eager to get to easter holidays. Hermione and Draco met as usual each day to learn new spells. Nowadays, their lessons were much more light hearted. They laughed a lot, teased each other, and complained about the heavy workload they were getting before break. Draco's eyes were as expressive as ever, but they still made Hermione's heartbeat quicken everytime they lit up. Draco made no move to touch her. He acted like their kiss had never happened, and Hermione began to wonder whether it had only occurred because he needed to get her out of his system. She convinced herself it was for the best; after all, even if they had changed, he was still a Malfoy and she a mudblood. She was sure that their destinies lay at opposite ends; her fighting loyally as part of the golden trio, and him a deatheater standing beside his father and Voldomort. But sometimes, when he gave her a real, true smile, or said a kind word to Harry and Ron, she thought that maybe…maybe there was still hope for him yet, and it warmed her heart.

Harry made no mention of Sirius to Hermione, but she knew that he was thinking about him constantly. It was in his eyes. Once, in History of Magic, when his eyes were glazed over, and it was obvious he wasn't paying attention, she leaned over and whispered smoothly in his ear, "He's so fit, isn't he?" Harry's face turned crimson instantly, but whatever he said, Hermione did not hear: she was doubled over with laughter.

As she observed him, she became more and more determined to give the two of them the happy endings that they deserved, and as the days grew closer she grew more confident in her plan. She knew she would have to ask for help, but that was the easy part. She knew just who to ask.

On the day of their departure, they gathered in Professor Dumbledore's office. The Weasley's, Hermione, Harry and Draco were all talking loudly about how excited they were and what they planned to do, until Dumbledore entered the room.

"Everyone, it is time to report to Hermione's house. You will be flooing there. We will be saying the words for you, to ensure that you all reach safely." Dumbledore narrowed his eyes at Harry, who flushed slightly.

"Please, enjoy yourselves thoroughly, but be safe. And Draco remember to keep your things packed. If at all we will need to collect you from the house, we will let you know immediately. Oh and Remus, do make sure Sirius is responsible!" Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling and Sirius rolled his eyes when Remus clapped him on the back with a "Will do, Sir, will do," grinning at Sirius mischeviously.

They all began to line up at the fireplace. It was agreed that Hermione would go first and as she made her way there, she grabbed Fred and George by the arms and said "Do me a favor, come directly after me?"

They looked at each other with raised eyebrows and then at her. "Alright," they chorused.

Hermione grabbed a bit of floo powder, spoke clearly into the fireplace and then everything went dark and she was spinning, spinning…

She landed rather ungracefully in the sitting room of her house, and then quickly stepped aside to let others through. True to their word, the twins quickly followed, and once they had both arrived, she quickly steered them into one of the bedrooms and shut the door.

"What's all this about, Hermione?" Fred asked.

"Alright, well. I need your help. But you have to promise not to tell a soul. Not even Ron. It's about Harry."

Fred and George looked at each other, they were grinning when they turned back to Hermione.

"What…?" Hermione asked carefully. Neither of them spoke. "Look," she said exasperatedly, "I really don't feel comfortable telling you, and he'd kill me if he found out, but…"

"Don't worry Hermione, we already know." George interrupted.

"What do you mean? You couldn't possibly…"

"Ah, but we do," Fred interrupted this time.

"Well…?" Hermione asked.

"Should we spare her," Fred asked George.

"Well, she's awfully bossy," George answered. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Yes but she does make pranking so much more satisfying that way." Fred responded.

"Alright," George said. "We'll spare her." They looked at her.

"We already know that Harry is in love with Sirius and that you're trying to set them up," they both chorused.

"What?!" Hermione was shocked. "How did you know?"

Fred and George laughed.

"Just because we didn't get as many OWLs as you," George said.

"Doesn't mean we're not as smart." Fred finished.

"I'm sure it's obvious to anyone who pays attention to this sort of thing," George remarked.

"Yeah, he doesn't make an effort to hide it really. Except to Sirius…"

"Which is extremely stupid."

"Though who could blame him, Sirius is one intimidating bloke."

"That's true. The man has quite the record…"

Hermione cleared her throat loudly.

"Right," George said, addressing her finally. "So what's the plan?"

She smiled. "Well, have you heard of the game called Truth or Dare?"

They both shook their head.

"Alright, well, I'll explain it later on, but it'll be pretty obvious what you'll have to do. I'm afraid that if I try to set them up, Harry will be too suspicious and he'll get nervous and back down, yeah?"

"Sounds like fun," they said together.

"Thank you!" Hermione said, obviously pleased. She reached up to hug Fred first.

"Look at that, we get hugs too!" George said.

Fred responded mid-hug, "Yeah, well it makes sense. She fancies one Weasley and we all look the same anyhow." Hermione blushed.

"Ah but you see," George said as she went to hug him as well. "At the moment, I believe she's not after a Weasley at all."

"Ah, you mean Malfoy."

Hermione pulled away to look incredulously at Fred.

"How did you…"

"Know?" Fred smirked. "We told you we're good at this."  
Hermione shrugged. "It's not true," she said nonchalantly. "There's now way in…"

"Perhaps not at the moment, but it sure is heading that way." George interrupted her with a glint in his eye. Hermione opened her mouth to argue, but she didn't know what to say, and instead was swept out the door by the twins.

When they reached the sitting room, everyone had arrived and was checking out the place. Most people were gathered at the far wall which was covered from top to bottom with cd racks filled with cds. When Hermione entered, Ginny approached her.

"What ARE these, Hermione?" she asked.

"Well, they're…"

But Draco cut her off. "I didn't know you did hip hop." He said.

"I didn't know you knew what hip hop even was." She countered.

"We were talking about BALLROOM dancing. Sophisticated styles. Hip Hop isn't exactly…decent. I wasn't sure what you would think," He said. She shrugged.

"I did everything."

"I didn't know you dance, Hermione," Harry said. She shrugged again.

"I don't anymore."

"That's too bad," Ginny said. "I've always wanted to learn. I've never done anything other than the Yule Ball."

Hermione smiled. "Maybe I'll take you one of these days."

Everyone grinned at the amount of freedom they were about to have. The room fell silent.

"Well," Hermione said cheerfully. "No one's hungry right?" Everyone shook their head.

"What?! Even Ronniekins isn't hungry?" George asked. Ron rolled his eyes as everyone sniggered.

"In that case," Hermione continued. "I have a game we can all play. It'll be extremely…entertaining." Remus gulped. Hermione has that mischevious glint in her eye again, and even though she wasn't known for breaking the rules, you could never tell with her. They all sat in a circle according to Hermione's instructions ("Yes, yes, you MUST play Remus, and you too Tonks and Sirius"), and she explained the game.

"Alright, so one person is allowed to ask another Truth or Dare. If you chose Truth, you have to answer one question honestly, and if you say Dare then you have to do anything the other person says to. Simple enough? Okay, who wants to go first?"

"We will!" the twins said.

"No wait, that's not fair, you two can't play as a team," Tonks complained. They looked at each other.

"Oh alright, I'll go first," Fred said. His eyes slid over everyone as he decided who would be his first victim.

"Ron!" he settled on. Ron grimaced. "Uh-oh."

"Ron, Truth or Dare?"

"I…uh…Dare."

Fred's eyes gleamed wickedly. "Let's start with something tame. I dare you to kiss Harry on the cheek!"

"What?!" exclaimed Ron. "I can't! He's a bloke!" Harry pretended to look offended and everyone laughed. "A good looking bloke of course, Harry, but still." Harry flushed.

"Oh Ron, don't be such a wuss," said Ginny. Draco, who was sitting quietly, smirked slightly at this.

"Ron you're so pathetic. It's just one kiss."

"I think," hermione said slowly, "that we need something to…loosen us up." Sirius looked at her with surprised interest, and everyone but Ginny and Tonks looked pretty shocked. Tonks shrugged.

"Do you have anything?"

"What?! But they're underage! They can't drink!" Remus protested.

"Moony, we're here aren't we? It's not like they're at some pub. It'll be fine," Sirius said soothingly.

"Well…alright." Fred and George let out a cheer and Ron and Harry grinned cautiously. Draco just sat looking amused. Hermione went into the kitchen, followed by Sirius.

She poured the drinks, and then with an added charm by Sirius to have them keep refilling themselves (Shh! Don't tell Remus!) they went back to the sitting room and handed everyone a drink.

Ron swallowed more than half in one gulp. Then he eyed Harry, who was sitting next to him, with a resolve. He put one hand on the back of his head, one hand under his chin, pulled Harry towards himself and quickly kissed his cheek, withdrawing. Ron blushed slightly, but his face was determined. Harry said nothing. The circle giggled enthusiastically.

"Time for revenge," declared Ron. "Fred, you're turn."

"No," Hermione interrupted. "You can't ask the person who asked you. You have to ask someone else."

Ron shrugged. "Alright, George. You're the same people anyway." Everyone laughed.

"Truth or Dare." George's eyes danced deviously. "Truth."

"What?! That's not fair!"  
"Tough luck, Ronniekins. You had the choice too."

"Well, alright, fine. Okay here goes. Best fuck you've ever had. You have to say who it was, where, and when"

"Alicia Spinnet, sixth year, Gryffindor team lockers," he answered promptly.

"Oh gross!" shrieked all the quidditch players. Sirius was laughing and nudging Remus who refused to meet his eyes and had turned a bright shade of red.

"Sirius!" George exclaimed.

Sirius jumped at his name. "What?"

"Your turn! Truth or Dare?"

Sirius smiled, "I think I'll play it safe. Truth."

George looked disappointed. "Well, alright then. Same question. Best fuck you've ever had."

Sirius laughed, "That's easy, Re–" But Remus touched his arm and shook his head slightly.

"Why not?!" Sirius asked petulantly. Remus didn't say anything but his eyes were communicating everything and Sirius understood.

"Fine," he said, sounding disappointed. "Now what?"

"Well, if you can't or don't want to do the task, you have to remove an article of clothing." Hermione answered.

"What?!" cried Ron. "How come you didn't tell ME that?"

Tonks laughed. "She wanted to see her favorite boys kiss is all."

Hermione laughed. "Well I certainly wouldn't MIND watching…" Everyone giggled, and Harry blushed.

Ron looked at her incredulously. "You're so drunk." he grumbled.

"Now, seeing Sirius shirtless is something **I** wouldn't mind seeing one bit," Ginny mused. It was Sirius's turn to flush. He smiled at her.

"Yeah, especially if he's still fit like he was at school." Hermione agreed.

"Wait a second, how do you know how I looked during Hogwarts?!"

"Some pictures have been floating around." Tonks giggled.

"Tonks! You'll pay for that. But alright, I'm a good sport." He slowly, teasingly pulled off his shirt. Hermione and Ginny giggled, and the Weasley boys groaned, but Harry's reaction was best of all.

His eyes drank in the sight of Sirius's perfect torso. His muscles were all lightly definied, and he had a light dusting of hair leading from his belly button into his trousers. His tan was perfect, though there were a couple of bruises and scars here and there.

"Damn, Sirius," Ginny muttered. She was grinning at him. "You are one fine looking bloke."

"Ginny!" the Weasley boys admonished.

"What? It's true!" Tonks and Remus were laughing hysterically, and Sirius was caught between looking smug and embaressed, but Hermione was watching Harry. When his tongue darted out to lick his lips, she nudged him discreetly, and he started.

"You're staring," she whispered.

"Sorry," he mumbled, and took another swig of his drink.

"Alright, Sirius, you're turn."  
"I know, I know. Tonks, truth or dare?"

"Dare. I"ll be adventerous."

"Alright." He thought carefully for a moment. "I dare you to give Remus a lapdance."

"Bloody Hell Sirius! Absolutely not!" hissed Remus.

"No way, Sirius, I'm not drunk enough for that. Though I wouldn't mind it without the audience." She winked provacatively at Remus, who blushed slightly, but grinned.

"Oh alright, bunch of wuses. I take it back."

"You can't," Hermione scolded. "Someone has to take off their shirt."

Tonks looked to Remus. "I don't think I can. Not sure it's a good idea."

"We don't think so!" the twins protested. Tonks laughed but shook her head.

"Come on, Remus," Ginny cheered.

"Him too Ginny?" Ron mourned, looking disbelievelingly at his baby sister.

"There's nothing wrong with admiring a body from afar Ron," she argued.

"Besides, he's more fit than I am," Sirius proclaimed, laughing.

Remus hesitated.

"Come on Remus," Hermione urged, "Don't be embarressed."

He smiled at her. "Don't worry I'm not. I'm just making sure there aren't any nauseatingly fresh scars that'll gross you out too much." The room fell silent, and Sirius gently squeezed Remus's arm. Remus smiled at him.

"No, it's alright," he assured him. "I don't think there's anything." He quickly pulled his shirt off.

There was a collective gasp.

"What?" he asked, quietly, with a touch of shame in his voice. Sirius squeezed his hand again. "You should have expected the scars."

"Not the scars," Ginny breathed, "Though they look brilliant, I must say."

"Then what?" He sounded truly bewildered.

"Remus, have you ever LOOKED at your body?"

"Well, yeah, but…so?"

Ginny rolled her eyes, looking at Hermione to help her explain.

Hermione laughed. "What she's trying to say it, goddamnit Remus, you are fucking hot." Remus blushed crimson, but no one denied it. They were all thinking the same thing. There was not an ounce of fat on Remus's torso. His abs were perfectly defined, and his arms were ripped.

"Have you been working out to maintain that?" Harry asked.

Remus shrugged. "It makes the transformations easier to bear."

"You mean you looked like that in school too?"

Remus nodded.

"Damn Remus, whoever you were sleeping with was one lucky arse." Ginny muttered. Remus turned red again and Sirius chuckled. In fact, he looked a bit smug. After all, it was he who had been sleeping with Remus in school.

"Looks like Sirius knows something we don't," Fred pointed out.

Sirius laughed harder. "Oh, you have no idea how true that last statement was."

"The one about who Remus fucked at school?" Sirius nodded, trying to get his laughter under control.

"Alright," Remus said hastily, shooting Sirius a dark look. "Let's get on with the game shall we? It's Tonk's turn right?"

"Oh yeah! Ginny. Truth or Dare."

"Um, truth."

"Fine," she giggled. "Who was your first kiss?"

"TONKS!" Ginny shrieked.

"uh uh uh, you have to answer!"

"But you know already!"

Tonks smirked. "I think there are some people here who should know as well." The Weasley boys suddenly looked extremely interested.

"Oh crap," Hermione muttered.

"Fine," Ginny grumbled. "Hermione."

"What about her?" Harry asked.

"No. Her. She was my first kiss."

"WHAT?!" the Weasley boys were enraged.

"It's not that big a deal, I swear. We were just drunk and messing around."

"Oh shit," Draco whispered. Tonks took one look around the room and burst out laughing.

Ron, Fred and George looked out of their minds with confusion and disbelief. Harry was chuckling quietly. Draco looked like he was enjoying the mental image very much but trying hard not to. Sirius and Remus were grinning at Hermione and Ginny, and Hermione had buried her face in her hands.

"Alright alright," Tonks said, when she had had her fun. (Fred and George were still babbling things like "Unbelievable!" and "Our own BABY sister!") "Let's move on."

"Yeah, let's move on! Hermione!" Ginny was up to something. Hermione studied her trying to figure out what it was. Then it clicked.

"Oh no. You can't ask that!"

"Ask what?!" asked Ron. The girls ignored him.

Ginny looked smug. "Fine, then don't say truth."

Hermione realized she was trapped.

"Fine. Dare."

Ginny's face lit up.  
"Fine. If that's what you want. I dare you to dance hip hop with Draco."

"What?!" They both exclaimed.

"You don't even know what that is!" Hermione protested.

Ginny shrugged. "I know it's not decent." She winked.

"Come on Draco," Harry encouraged mischeviously. "Don't purebloods get a million years of dance lessons?"

"Yes, but, not in this!" he protested.

"Then how'd you learn," Ginny was curious.

"Muggle clubs," Draco admitted.

"What?! The great Draco Malfoy went to muggle clubs?!" Fred and George exclaimed.

Draco shrugged. "The girls were great."

They laughed and high fived him.  
"Nice!" Draco smiled.

"Well, go on then," Ron said, a glint in his eye

"Ron, don't make him do what he doesn't want to do. " Harry countered instantly. Ron shrugged.

"He's not going to anyway. He's going to wuss out."

Draco, on hearing this immediately stood up, and held his hand out for Hermione, who smiled at him, remembering their first date. She took his hand and he pulled her up strongly.

"You know, they just good cop, bad copped you right?" She laughed.

Draco groaned.

"I should have seen that coming." The circle laughed. This was the most they had heard him speak all day.

Hermione waved her wand and music started to play. It had a high bass drive that shook the entire room. The song was about sex and it was dirty and vulgar but the beat was incredibly addicting. Hermione searched Draco's face, suddenly awkward and nervous, but Draco did not reflect those feelings. He looked confident and devious. He put his hands on her waist, spun her around and pulled her flush against his body. The circle gasped. This was not what they had expected. It took them a second to get the rhythm just right and then Draco and Hermione were dancing as if they'd been doing it forever. Their bodies gyrated to the beat. Draco had his hands on her waist, and Hermione's one hand covered them and one hand was in her hair. She moved like fluid, and he was almost as equally talented. It was breathtaking not to mention arousing to watch them.

When the song ended, Draco took Hermione's hand and bowed to the audience with her. Then they returned to their seats. Silence.

"Oh. Bloody fucking hell." Ginny said after a moment. "So THAT'S what that is."

"You lot have never been to a club before?" Remus asked, surprised.

Sirius laughed. "And when would they have time for that Moony? It wasn't like our school days when we could sneak out together to go out. They're all under careful surveillance."

"Hang on, you guys snuck out together to go to pubs?"

"Well, yeah, all three of us did. But never just me and Sirius," Remus ammended quickly. Sirius shot him an annoyed look, but Remus pretended not to notice.

"That's not fair at all!" Ginny cried. "We're missing out on all the fun."

"I'm sorry," Harry apologized sincerely.

"Oh shut up, Harry, you've nothing to apologize for. We'll go out this week to a club. There a couple of good ones here." Hermione assured everyone. "Come on now, let's get on with the game. It's my turn right? Everyone's been asked already right?"

"Well, not everyone."

"Yeah, but they've all participated in some way. Well except for Harry and Fred."

"What about Draco?" Harry asked.

"I just had sex through my clothes in front of you lot. I think I'm good." Draco retorted. Everyone laughed, though Hermione's ears had gone pink.

"Yeah, well, I was kissed by Ron!"

"Hey!"

Hermione laughed. "Alright, fine. Fred. Truth or Dare?"

"You are more troublesome than people give you credit for. I'll stick with truth."

"Oh fine, and I had a good one for dare too. But alright, if you were in a relationship with a Metamorphagus, and you could ask him or her to change into anyone, who would you choose?"

Fred grinned. "That's easy Hermione. I'd choose Professor," (he stressed the word Professor), "R. J. Lupin."

"Oh, my, GOD. My family has gone insane," Ron said, smacking his forehead.

Sirius and everyone else was dying of laughter and Remus had his head in his hands.

"It's so true though," Ginny said, between fits of giggling. "He's so gorgeous."

"ENOUGH!" Remus cried. "Stop torturing me Fred. Tell us who you were really thinking of."

"Remus, you really sell yourself short. You really are the best looking guy I have ever seen in my entire life."

Remus shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm scarred all over, I always look tired and weary, and I'm old, and…"

"How many times do I have to tell you, you are none of those things!" Sirius interrupted.

"How can such a hero have such a low opinion of themselves?" Harry asked quietly.

"Old habits die hard. This isn't a new thing for him. He's always had low self esteem issues in this area." Sirius voiced. Silence.

"Well, you always had enough arrogance for the both of us," Remus said trying to laugh off the seriousness. It worked slightly.

"Go on Fred, it's your turn," Tonks said.

"Alright, Harry, I think you're up. Truth or Dare."

"Oh and you're the boy who lived Harry, so don't you dare choose Truth," Hermione said, sticking out her tongue at him.

"Oh alright, Dare."

Fred's voice was filled with glee. "Perfect. Kiss Sirius. On the lips. With tongue." Harry's face became paler with each of his words.

"WHAT?!" Sirius exclaimed. "That's insane. He'd never agree to that." But Hermione was shooting him a glare that Harry could read perfectly. "If you back down from this, I'll kill you. This is a perfect excuse for you." So Harry took a huge swig of his drink, and went to kneel down in front of Sirius.

Sirius panicked slightly. "Harry," he whispered urgently. "You're drunk. You aren't thinking straight. You're going to regret this."

"No I'm not," Harry said confidently. And then, he pressed his lips softly to Sirius's. At first, Sirius didn't respond, but then, he relented and pressed his lips back towards Harry, snaking his hand into the younger boy's hair. Harry growled low in his throat and grabbed fistfuls of Sirius's shirt. Sirius nibbled at Harry's lower lip, and the boy parted his lips eagerly for him. Their tongues circled and battled, and Harry let another moan escape.

Suddenly Sirius pulled back.

"I can't do this," he muttered. "I'm sorry." He pushed Harry gently away and got up, and left the room to go outside on the porch, shutting the door behind him.

--

A/N: Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed. I'm sorry I keep putting the characters through angst, and so I figured I'd lay off for this chapter. Hope you found the game entertaining.

Also, I'm looking for BETA, so if anyone is interested, please let me know. Again, feedback is welcome as usual. Thanks for taking the time to read, and I hope you'll take a few more seconds to leave a review! Thanks for sticking with this. Plenty of exciting stuff ahead! -Snuffleslove


	9. Chapter 8

In the circle, there was silence

In the circle, there was silence. Then Harry slowly pushed himself up off the floor, and left the room in the opposite direction, heading for one of the bedrooms.

Hermione groaned exasperatedly. "Why are the two of them so afraid of their feelings? I mean it's so obvious that they both feel the same way. So why run and hide?"

Remus shook his head. "I think Sirius is taking a leaf out of my book. He normally never does this. I'll go see what it's about." He got up and followed Sirius.

"I'll go check on Harry. Hermione why don't you put on some music or something?" Ron asked.

Hermione smiled. "Alright. Draco, you can give dance lessons." He gave her a small smile in return, and Ron went to go find Harry.

He found him in one of the bedrooms, sitting on the edge of the bed, curled up with his knees against his chest. Silently, Ron sat beside him, put an arm around him and pulled him close.

When Hermione entered the room, and she found her boys like that, she couldn't resist a smile. She knelt down next to Harry, and put her head on his knee.

"Oh Harry," she said softly. "It's alright. Everything is going to be just fine. You'll see."

Harry nodded slightly. "It's not like I didn't expect this. I did. But now I feel like I've ruined everything. He'll never be able to look me in the eye after tonight."

"I think you've got it all wrong, mate," Ron said. "I'm sure that he loves you. He just freaked out a bit. You have to remember, your dad was his best mate. Now he's probably worried about what your dad would think of him right now. He just has to figure that out, and then he'll come back, you'll see."

Harry had to smile at this. "When did you get so insightful Ron?" Ron shrugged.

"Hermione's bound to rub off on me after so long, right?" The three of them laughed.

"No, wait, sit with me for sometime," Harry protested, when Hermione moved to get up. She smiled.

"I'm not going anywhere, I promise."

She moved to the bed and sat cross-legged on it. Ron let go of Harry, and she pulled him back so that he was lying down with his head in her lap. Ron lay down, with his head on Harry's stomach, and Harry sighed contently. He snaked his hands until he found one of each of their hands and held on tight. Hermione giggled.

"You're so spoilt, you know that?" she teased.

"I know." His face was smug. "I have the best friends anyone could ever ask for."

Speaking of best friends…

When Remus entered the porch, he found Sirius's back to him leaning against the railing.

"Sirius! What are you doing? Harry's waiting for you. He thinks you hate him now. This is no time to be a coward!"

When Sirius turned around, there was a mixture of anger and shame on his face. The alcohol made him defensive however, and instead of admitting this, he lashed out at Remus.

"Says the man who is the most cowardly of all. Sometimes, I think you ENJOY being a werewolf. That way, you have an excuse to hide away and never get too close to anyone, never let anyone love you, never put your heart at risk." Remus looked like he had been slapped. But Sirius wasn't done yet.

"And then, at the same time," Sirius was pacing now. "You're sitting on this high horse. As if you're too good for everyone, too good for me!"

"What are you on about?" Remus managed to ask.

"You're ashamed to admit you went out with me! You act as if the year and half we spent together was a big mistake!"

What the FUCK? Remus thought to himself.

"Sirius, you're so drunk. Why would I be ashamed…?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" He cried, his voice filled with frustration. "I'm trying to figure that out. Is it because of the Sex God status I had at Hogwarts? Because you think I'm nothing but a pretty boy? Because you're ashamed of my family? Because you think I'm immature? I can't for the life of me…"

"PADFOOT!" Remus shouted. Sirius finally halted his pacing to look at him. "What is WRONG with you?! There is no way in hell that I am ashamed of what we had together. I was in LOVE with you for Merlin's sake! But we've ended that part in our relationship, and now someone else has fallen under your spell! Sirius, Harry is in love with you. He's been in love with you for a long time now. And I just didn't want him to get the wrong idea about us. We're always together and touching, and I was afraid that he would think that we were still dating, or that we were in love or something. Then he'd play the martyr, like he always does, and sacrifice his feelings for our happiness! Do you understand now? Oh God, Padfoot, you're so ridiculous. ASHAMED of you? For chrissake. It's me whose always afraid that YOU'RE too good for ME!"

"He's…He's in love with me?"

Remus nodded.

"But…why?"

Remus smiled softly. "Now whose selling themselves short?"

"No it's just, I didn't realize he saw me like that, that's all. I thought he saw me more like…a father figure or something. We're old aren't we?" he asked, as if he couldn't wrap his mind around it and Remus laughed at him.

"You should have realized it. He acted the same way you acted around me. He…"

"avoided me. Didn't look me in the eye. Oh my god." Sirius was silent for a moment. For some reason, this was something he had not anticipated. Harry, (HIS Harry!), in love with him? Attracted to him, maybe. That would explain the enthusiastic kiss. But, in love with him? It didn't make any sense. Harry was supposed to fall for someone young, full of life, beautiful or handsome in every way. Someone…perfect.

"I can't…" Sirius said, trailing off.

"Can't what Padfoot?"

"I can't...be his person. I'm not…good enough for the savior of our world. He won't be happy with me. Maybe if I was closer to his age, or not…his father's best friend…"

"Sirius, enough of this. Do you think he cares about your age or your past? He doesn't see any of that. You're his world, Sirius. To him you're perfect."

"You really think so?"

Remus laughed. "Were you there like fifteen minutes ago? Did you FEEL the way he kissed you? I almost wished it was me he was kissing!"

"Moony!" Remus only laughed harder. Finally he managed to stop.

"Do you love him, Padfoot?" he asked quietly after a minute.

"Of course. I've always loved him."

"So then what are you waiting for? The longer you sit here with me, the more his heart breaks. Go on. Make it up to him."

Sirius took a deep breath and then took on a look of determination.

"Alright." He headed to the door.

"Oh and Moony?"

"Hmmm?"

"You know I didn't mean what I said before right?"

Remus smiled half-heartedly.

"I know, but it's probably true anyway."

"No, it's not. I promise. You're one of the best, Remus. I promise you that."

"Thanks, Padfoot. I appreciate it."

"It's true." He smiled.

"Oh and Moony, one more thing?"

"Yeah?"

"Tonks isn't going to wait forever."

Remus flushed, and Sirius winked at him before leaving the room.

When he stepped into the sitting room, the scene had changed drastically. The lights were dimmed, and there was heavy hip hop going on. Fred and George were sandwiching Tonks and dancing, and Draco and Ginny were sitting and talking on the side. When Ginny saw him, she pointed towards one of the bedroom doors and winked at him. He flushed slightly, and crossed the room.

When he opened the bedroom door, only Hermione noticed him. Ron and Harry both had their eyes closed. She smiled at him reassuringly, and then gently nudged Harry. Harry opened his eyes and when he realized who was in the room, he sat up quickly.

"Sirius!" His movement jostled Ron, who with a look from Hermione got the hint. They both made their excuses and quietly left the room, Hermione squeezing Harry's hand for support.

"Hi," Sirius said quietly, when they had left. "Can I sit?"

"Yeah, of course," Harry said moving so Sirius could sit beside him. They both started to speak at once: Harry to apologize, and Sirius to explain.

"Wait, me first," Harry said. "I'm sorry, okay? About the kiss. And I understand that you can't love me the way I want you to. I can handle that. What I won't be able to stand is if I lose your friendship. We don't have to be…lovers, but we can still be friends right?"

Sirius searched Harry's eyes. All he could find there was love. He smiled softly, and then suddenly, he kissed him, threading his hand through his hair and pulling him closer. Harry responded eagerly, kissing him as if it was the last time he'd be able to. When they finally pulled apart, Sirius looked into Harry's eyes.

"How about if we're both?"

Harry's grin stretched from ear to ear.

When the two of them exited the bedroom, the sight before them hadn't changed much. Ginny and Draco were still sitting and talking, Fred, George, and Tonks were laughing together, and Ron and Hermione sat together quietly, waiting for Harry. When they noticed the pair, everything stopped and they waited apprehensively. Sirius looked around, and then, with a long finger, he lifted Harry's chin delicately, and kissed him deeply. When they pulled away, Harry was blushing and Sirius laughed, a slight smirk playing at his lips. Everyone let out a cheer, and Harry blushed even harder. Ginny whistled.

From the doorway to the porch, Remus spoke. He was leaning against the frame, and when he caught Sirius's eye, he winked. "Let's get this party started shall we?" With a wave of his wand, the lights dimmed and flashed, much like they did at the muggle clubs they had snuck out to years ago. He waved his wand again, and music began to shake the room.

"Come on," Ginny said, pulling Draco to his feet and then Hermione and Ron. "Let's dance."

This time there was no pairing off, no sexual grinding. This time, the group circled up, and instantly, the girls began to dance. The boys looked at each other, and then with a shrug, Fred and George began to move to the beat as well. Sirius and Remus laughed and they began to move their bodies gracefully to the music. Harry groaned.

"Is there anything you can't do?" he shouted into Sirius's ear over the music. Sirius laughed.

"It's easy," he shouted back, "I'll teach you." He simplified his movements, and encouraged Harry and Ron to imitate him. Soon, they too were moving easily to the beat. (Though Ron's face was still flaming red.)

They all danced for a little while until everyone began to get tired. With another wave of Remus's wand, the music ended and they all sank to the floor, exhausted.

"Come on," Hermione said, after a moment. "Let's get to bed. How are we going to this? Okay, the three girls will take my room, Remus and Sirius can share a room, Harry, Ron, Draco, you share a room, and Fred and George, you can take the bedroom by the kitchen." Everyone headed to bed, saying their goodnights. Sirius held Harry back, waiting until everyone had left the room. Fred, George, and Ginny winked at them as they left.

"Listen, Harry, you mean the world to me and you always will," he paused. "Even if you decide in the morning that this was a mistake."

Harry looked at him, shocked. "I thought everything was okay between us…"

"It is, Harry, it is. I promise you. It's just that, you're drunk, you're tired, you might regret this in the morning. I'm just giving you an out."

Harry rolled his eyes at him. "Sirius, I've wanted this for longer than you could possibly imagine. I promise you that is a dream come true for me at least. And besides, I'm not even close to being drunk."

Sirius opened his mouth to protest, but Harry interrupted him. "Look, we'll talk about…us," and Sirius smiled at the word, "tomorrow, I promise. But I'm so exhausted I can hardly see. So…good night," he finished rather awkwardly, and turned to go. But Sirius caught his arm, and pulled him close, hugging him tightly. He gave him a chaste kiss on the lips, and then released him. "Good night, Harry." Harry beamed. "Good night."

When Harry walked into the bedroom, he found Ron and Draco eying each other and the bed wearily.

"What's going on?" he asked.

Ron sighed exasperatedly. "Hermione planned this you know? Everything that's going to happen on this trip is going to happen because Hermione wanted it to for some reason or another. I mean I'm sure there's another place for us to sleep, but she insisted on us all sleeping together."

Draco nodded his agreement. Harry studied the two of them. Then, he shrugged.

"Well, I call one of the ends," he declared. Ron laughed.

"Fine, then I call the other end. I'm not sleep next to the ponce. Who knows what might happen. After all, I AM irresistible," Ron said teasingly.

Harry laughed.

"Draco, you comfortable with sleeping between us?"

"Sleeping in between Scarface and Wonder Weasel? I'm not sure that I can handle it." His words were harsh but his tone was light and they knew that he was joking. They both laughed.

"Alright, I'm knackered, I'm off to bed." Harry pulled out his pj bottoms and quickly changed, Ron and Draco quickly following suit. The three of them had not bothered with shirts and when Ron was done, Harry winked at Draco and then stared at Ron.  
"God Ron," he said hoarsely, "You're so fit."

"Yeah," Draco said, quickly cottoning on. "Quidditch has really done you well." He licked his lips.

Ron blushed and attempted to laugh them off. "Oh shut it, I know what you guys are up to."

They all laughed.

"Hermione is one smart girl," Ron mused. Draco and Harry nodded in agreement asserting that the awkwardness between them had pretty much passed.

Then they climbed into bed together, and with a murmur from Harry, the light shut and they all fell asleep quickly.

"Come ON Hermione! Look me in the eye and HONESTLY tell us that you don't fancy him," Ginny prodded. Hermione shook her head.

"Look, he kissed me once. And then for one week he made no effort to follow through with it. It's obvious that he thinks the kiss was a mistake."

"Number one," Tonks said impatiently, "you have no proof of that AT ALL. Maybe you don't see the way he looks at you, but we can all tell. And Number two,"

"We weren't asking about his feelings we were asking about yours." Ginny finished for her.

"Look guys, I love you, but can we please drop this? It's not like anything could happen even if I did like him. He's destined to be a deatheater. He wants to kill Dumbledore AND Harry! Inviting him here, convincing him to join the order is one thing, and even kissing him once is okay. But becoming romantically involved in him? NO. No matter how charming and handsome he is, I have to resist. Because in the end I'll have to choose between him and Harry and you both know already who I would choose."

"Oh Hermione," Tonks said gently, "It's never simple. Love is never simple. But you and I know that we can't help who we fall in love with. And your love might be what Draco needs to keep him to the light. It might help him to choose. You shouldn't resist Hermione, because you might save him!"

"But what about myself, Tonks? How am I going to be able to pick myself up if he chooses the Deatheaters?"  
"Oh, sweetie," Ginny said gently, "We'll be here for you. We'll always be here for you. And I know everyone is asking a lot of you, but we wouldn't be asking this of you if we knew that you didn't already have feelings for him. Do you understand? I know it's sounds awful: asking you to put your heart on the line, and risk falling in love with a death eater to turn him. But think about it, and trust us. We're telling you that Draco is already in really deep for you. We're sure that he's going to choose you."

"He's going to choose You-Know-Who."

"You're thinking of the worst possible situation Hermione! If he doesn't, think of how happy the two of you could be happy together. It won't be simple. But love is NEVER simple. Look at Harry and Sirius. Their love is going to be so hard. But it's going to be worth it. You can tell by the way they look at each other. And Remus and I? He can barely look me in the eye, and sometimes I'm afraid that he and I will never have the courage to act on our feelings, but in the end I know this torment will be worth it. I know it every time he smiles at me." Tonks said. "It sounds awful. Like we're making it your mission to make him fall in love with you. And we don't want to ask you to do this. But you do have feelings for him don't you?" Hermione nodded hesitantly.

"So use it to your advantage. Gain your happiness and help us win this war," Tonks finished.

"I don't want you to think I don't want to do this. I do. I'd do anything for the Order at this point. It's just that I'm afraid to open up to him, because I'm so afraid of falling in love with him."

"Oh, Hermione, we're so sorry to have to ask this of you, we know it's hard."

"I never thought that this is what it would come to, to turn him. I thought I'd just have to earn his friendship and his trust."

"And that will help, definitely," Ginny said adamantly.

"But it's going to take more than that Hermione, and you know it," Tonks said cautiously.

"I know," Hermione said softly. "I'll just have to find courage to trust him with my feelings."

"We're here Hermione," Tonks said hugging her close, and on the other side of the bed, Ginny put her arm around Hermione. The three of them fell asleep like that, safe in each others' arms.

--

**A/N: **Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed this. I'm not exactly sure how I feel about the last part with Hermione. I wanted you guys to understand how much stress is on Hermione and Draco for their romance to work out, but I don't think I did it well enough. sighs Oh well, I hope you enjoyed it!


	10. Chapter 9

The next morning, Harry awoke to find Draco missing and Ron still fast asleep. Not bothering to put on a shirt because it was so warm, he wandered into the kitchen following his nose and the delicious smell.

In the kitchen he found Draco Malfoy, also shirtless and barefoot making pancakes. He chuckled at the sight, which alerted Draco to his presense.

"You're up early. You don't need to cook for us you know." Harry said.

"I know, but I like to." Harry raised an eyebrow, and Draco shrugged.

"Guilty pleasure."

Harry laughed. "Okay, if you insist." He smiled, and stretched lazily, humming contently.

"Someone slept well," Draco said, laughing at him.

"Yeah, I did." Harry grinned. "How about you? Sleep well? Even next to a ponce?"  
Draco chuckled. "I'm not nearly as attractive as Weasley, so I had nothing to worry about. I slept better than I have in about a year."

Harry smiled, and then frowned suddenly. "You should probably eat better on this trip too."

Draco looked down at his body. His frame was thin and sickly looking and you could practically count all the ribs in his body. "I don't mean to…I mean…I just…I just don't get time to take care of myself sometimes."

Harry waved his response away. "I know. I know what it's like to have that pressure on you. It's impossible to focus on anything else. I know."

Draco snuck a glance at Harry.

"Why are you being so nice? You know the kind of pressure I'm under. You know WHOSE pressure I'm under. And you know the task I have to accomplish. How can you look me straight in the eye?"

"Would you rather me be mean?" Harry asked darkly. "Because I can be very mean."

"No, it's just…"

"Look Draco, it's like Ginny says. Hermione likes you, and we TRUST her. We trust her to know what she's doing. We trust her to know that you won't hurt us in our sleep. Do you understand? I don't know how things work with your friends, but here, we HAVE to trust each other. We have to believe that we all want the best for everyone."

Draco nodded slowly. "It doesn't work that way among death eaters," he said softly.

"I know," Harry said equally as quiet. "Maybe that's why it's so important that it works that way here."

When Remus woke up, he instantly knew he was not alone in bed. It was hard to miss that fact when the other person had his chest to your back, his hips to your hips, his knees to your knees, his feet to your feet, an arm slung across your waist, and a nose in your neck. He smiled slightly.

Sirius was a cuddler, he always had been. And that had been one of his favorite parts of waking up with him in the morning when he was a boy at school. It felt good to be in his arms, even though the relationship was now platonic, or perhaps because it was. Remus found it easier to trust him as a best mate than as a lover. A small part of him knew that it was because he probably wouldn't be able to bear losing him as a lover: as a friend, it was easier. Not easy of course, just easier.

Sirius stirred behind him, and Remus could feel his smile on his neck.

"Good morning, Moony," he said smiling.

"Mm, morning, Padfoot," he answered softly. He felt Sirius move away slightly and sit up, and he too joined him.

"You don't mind…" Padfoot trailed off uncertainly.

"No, of course not," Remus said. "And I'm pretty sure Harry trusts you and I enough for him to understand."

"Do you think…" he paused. "Do you think Harry and I… Do you think we're going to work?"

Remus smiled, choosing his words carefully, he spoke. "I can't tell you for certain, but I can tell you what I see. You need to protect the people you love, and he wants to feel protected and loved. You're a perfect match that way. It also helps that he adores you and you him. You have that unconditional love that comes from being almost family, as well as the chemistry if that kiss was anything to go by. I think you guys are cut out for each other."

Sirius looked determined, "Well, there's only one way to find out." And he moved to get out of bed, but Remus stopped him.

"Siri, you don't NEED to be perfect for him. I know this is probably the most unhelpful piece of advice, but try and be yourself okay? Harry has faults too, and he knows that you love him anyway, so he loves you anyway. Do you understand?" Sirius nodded.

"Thanks Moony," he said smiling and pulled a shirt on over his pajama pants. "I'm going to see whether anyone is up yet. Do you want to join me?"

Remus shook his head. "Give me a minute."

So Sirius left the room.

When he arrived in the kitchen, he found Draco behind the counter, making pancakes and Harry sitting on one of the barstools. There was a silence, but it didn't seem tense. Sirius hoped Harry wasn't regretting what happened last night. Not giving himself a chance to doubt himself and Remus's words, he snuck up behind Harry and wrapped his arms around his waist.

"Sirius," Harry murmered. He twisted around in Sirius's arms and stole a kiss. "Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

Sirius was beaming. "You're alright with this."

Draco rolled his eyes. "He was practically GLOWING yesterday. How could you not tell."

Sirius laughed. "You're right. I just…We're not exactly conventional…I…"

"Don't want to ruin anything good." Harry finished quietly.

"There," Hermione said, stepping into the kitchen. "You two are already finishing each other's sentences. What more do you want?" Tonks and Ginny laughed.

Ginny looked around. "Of course, the Weasley men are still sleeping."

"Is Remus up yet?" Tonks asked.

Sirius nodded. "Yeah, he said he needed a minute. But you can go check on him if you want."

Tonks nodded and left the room.

"They're another couple," Harry said after she left, "who need enlightenment on this trip." Hermione laughed.

"Yup, they're who I had in mind."

"I can think of another…" Ginny snickered

"Shush," Hermione said. She quickly changed the subject. "Draco, do you have enough pancakes for everyone?"

He laughed. "Nope, only for myself." Harry glared at him, and he chuckled. "Just kidding. Help yourself. They're delicious, if I do say so myself."

"Fucking HELL, Remus. WHY do you do this to yourself?" the angry shout came from Remus's room.

"Oh crap," Ginny whispered. She was the first to race to the room. The rest followed. When she got there, Fred, George and Ron were already standing in the doorway. Ginny and Sirius pushed their way through.

"Tonks, Remus, you alright in…FUCK. Remus, what happened?" Sirius asked.

Remus was sitting in a chair, with his leg up on the table beside him and his trousers rolled up. There was an ugly, fresh looking scar about a foot long stretching from midthigh to midcalf, and it looked like Tonks had interrupted him right in the middle of changing the bandages for it. She was kneeling down next to him and there were tears in her eyes.

"Padfoot, relax. It's nothing recent. They're from…"

"They haven't healed yet?" Tonks asked quietly. "Why didn't you tell us? You must be in pain." There was no anger now. Only sadness.

"It's fine. They only look bad. I promise, it's really not...I'm not in pain. I just didn't want you to worry."

"Remus, this isn't school. You're not protecting anyone. You don't have to…"

"I don't need you feeling sorry for me, Sirius," Remus said sharply.

"Moony..!"

"No, let him alone," Tonks said bitterly. "Obviously he doesn't want or need our help." She got up and pushed past everyone in the doorway.

"Tonks…" Hermione called after her. Then she looked towards Remus. Ginny understood. She gestured towards Sirius and Remus and then ran after Tonks.

Harry ushed everyone outside. "Come on guys, let's talk about what we want to do today."

Silence filled the room, as Hermione, Remus, and Sirius were left alone.

"Clearly the two of you have some issues you have to work out," Hermione pointed out. She sounded frustrated. "I get it. You two have been friends for a long time, you have a lot of baggage, you've changed. That's fine. But you're also grown men. And you need to start acting like it. Harry and Ron quarrel less than you and that's really saying something. Remus, you have to realize that coming to us for help does not mean you're weak. Being a werewolf is something we cannot even imagine, but we know it makes your life hell and we just want to help you. No one feels sorry for you. And Sirius, please, take a step back. Realize that Remus isn't used to having someone around who takes care of him the way you do. He's been doing it himself for 12 years. No matter how strong the urge is to…to mother him, you can't. You've both grown up. Alright? This is ridiculous. I can't have you two fighting anymore, not when you're supposed to be the best of friends. And Remus you better make things right with Tonks. She just wants to take care of you. And I know you're against that, but Remus, you DESERVE to be taken care of."

There was silence. The two men look down.

"Fix this," Hermione said sternly, then, in a softer voice, "I know you can. I would bet my life on your friendship." And with that she left the room, shutting the door soundly behind her.

The silence stretched. They could not look at each other. Suddenly Moony let out a whimper of pain.

"Moony, what's wrong?" Sirius looked up at him to find that Moony's eyes were glazed over, and fresh blood was coming from the wound.

"I've been…taking medication," Remus struggled for the words. His face was pale, his breaths were coming out in short pants, and he seemed to be in a lot of pain. "for the pain. I should have taken a pill half an hour ago."

"Where do you keep them?" Remus gestured to his trunk. Sirius quickly found them and gave one to Remus.

"Easy," he said, gripping his shoulder tightly. "Easy. It should kick in in any moment now." There was about a minute of turmoil, where Remus gripped Sirius's hand tightly, sweating and shaking, and then suddenly, Remus's face began to relax, and he smiled slightly.

"There, it's fine now. I love magic."

"It is NOT fine. Moony, what is wrong with telling me that you're in pain and you're taking medication? What is the POINT in hiding that from me?"

"It never came up…"

"REMUS I WAS THERE WHEN YOU GOT HURT. HOW COULD IT POSSIBLY HAVE NOT COME UP?"

"Look, Padfoot, I don't need you to take care of me…"

"It doesn't matter Remus! I WANT to help you! You think I'm doing this out of pity? Do you think I'm…paying a DEBT of some kind? No, you bastard, I'm doing this because I love you and I just…I just need to make sure that you're safe. I need you to be safe and whole so that I can be safe and whole. Why is that so hard to believe? Don't you feel the same way about me?"

Remus hung his head. "Of course I do, Padfoot. I just…"

"Just WHAT Moony?"

"I just…hate feeling weaker than you. I feel like I hold you back." It killed him to admit it, but Hermione was right, they were acting like children.

Sirius shook his head. "You make me who I am Remus. You make me a better person, a better friend. If it wasn't for you and James, I might have been on the wrong side of this war."

"That was mostly James and you know it."

"Remus, I'm tired of your insecurities. You're one of the most talented people in the Order, you're kind, responsible, good looking, and…"

"A werewolf."

"NO ONE SEES THAT," Tonks shouted from the doorway. "No one see that! Sirius doesn't see it. Hermione doesn't see it. Harry doesn't see it. And I most definitely do not see it. Do you think so low of us that we'd let that get in the way of loving you? You have lived with this your entire life. Why are you doubting yourself now…"

"It is my fault that we are losing this war!"

"What…?" Sirius and Tonks asked together.

"It's werewolves like Greyback," he shuddered slightly. "Fenrir is one of the main reasons for You-Know-Who's victories! He's using his lycanthropy to scare people into following Voldomort's orders. He's a monster," his voice broke. "We're all…"

"Don't you dare…" Sirius warned, his voice shaky. But Remus finished it quietly.

"Monsters." He whispered. Tonks shook her head.

"Remus, how could you…"

"What did he do to you?" Sirius asked quietly, as Tonks dropped to her knees besides him and held his hand tightly in hers.

"What did he say to you?" Sirius asked a little louder. "What bullshit did he feed you?" Remus didn't answer.

"Look at me," Tonks said. "Look at me. Good. You are not a monster. You are not a monster for many reasons, and the main one is that I am in love with you. No, LOOK at me. I am in love with you. I am in love with you because you're charming, and polite, and kind, and you always know the right thing to say when I'm hurting, and you always know how to make me smile, and your laugh makes my heart beat a little faster and when your eyes light up, I can't help but grin. And when I know that I'm going to see you soon, I walk a little faster, and Ginny has told me that I actually become more clumsy around you. Can you imagine? Even more clumsy than I already am?!" Sirius chuckled. Remus said nothing.

"And you know what? I know for a fact, that there is no way that I could fall in love with a monster. I know that you are not a monster, because even though it would mean more work after your awful mission, you volunteered and worked hard to bring the kids here for a vacation, and I know that a monster could never make Harry open up the way he does with you, and I know that everytime Sirius smiles at you, he doesn't see anything close to a monster. He sees this wonderful man who has survived so many horrible things, and still knows how to laugh. He sees you for who you truly are. Not for whatever that bastard Fenrir said to you. You see Remus, I know ALL of these things. I don't think. I KNOW. And I am one smart girl." Remus couldn't tear his eyes from her face. He did not know what to say.

When he didn't respond, she reached up tentatively, and kissed him lightly. He pulled away.

"Tonks, you don't want this. You don't want me. If you do this, I'll make you into an outcast. Your family might shun you, you might not be able to get work. I can't…Oh merlin, I can't do that to you. You're young, beautiful, and you could have anyone. And you have a family, and…"

"And she's in love with you!" Sirius said. His voice was tight, as if he was trying to contain his frustration. "What can we do to prove to you that we love you? What do we have to say…"

"Just trust us!" Tonks exclaimed. Remus shook his head.

"No, you don't understand. I can't…"

Sirius threw his hands up in the air, and left the room angrily, slamming the door hard behind him.

Remus swore.

"Remus, please. What happened on the mission that could make you possibly doubt Sirius's love for you? My love for you is one thing, fine. But Sirius? Hasn't he stood by you since you were little boys? You're hurting him, Remus. He blames himself for your pain."

Remus shook his head. "Tell him I'm sorry." Then he moved his newly bandaged leg gingerly to the floor and walked to the bathroom.

"Harry, Hermione, can you sit tight for a moment? I need to speak to Dumbledore." Sirius's anger and frustration were thinly veiled. Hermione and Harry nodded.

"It'll be fine," Ginny called from the table where they were all eating breakfast. "You'll see."

Sirius nodded blindly and ran to the other room where the fireplace was.

"Dumbledore? Professor Dumbledore?" Sirius called.

"In here, Sirius," he called from his office.

"Sir, there's something wrong with Remus. He's really upset. He has awful, open scars on his legs and unless he takes medication, he's in serious pain."

Dumbledore nodded.

"I told you this would happen!" someone hissed from the corner.

"Snape? What are you doing here?"

"What was I supposed to do?" Albus asked, ignoring Sirius. Sirius realized that he looked tired and weary. "He asked me not to tell anyone, and he insisted that we let him go."

"Who asked you not to tell anyone? Remus? What's he hiding?" Albus and Severus ignored him. They looked into each other's eyes, communicating through legilmensy.

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" Sirius asked.

"You have to tell him, Albus. He needs to know."

"Just tell me already, Snape," Sirius said softly. "I can handle this."

"You cannot get angry and do anything foolish, Black. Because that is precisely the reason why Lupin refused to tell you. Understood?"

Sirus nodded warily.

"Very well," Snape spoke. "You remember the night of the last full moon?"

"How could I forget," Sirius said bitterly.

"You were not told the whole truth. Lupin…Remus…was tortured, by Greyback's followers. They forced him to watch in his wolf state, the other wolves devouring a…little boy." He looked for a reaction from Sirius, but received none. Sirus was stoic, his eyes blank. "They knew that when Remus watched that, the Wolfsbane potion would keep his human side conscious, but at the same time, watching such a display would also awaken his natural instincts. He would feel like wanting to…join them. Obviously this is a battle that Remus has been fighting his entire life..."

"Sirius," Dumbledore warned. "You cannot change what happened by reacting angrily. The best we can hope to do is to be there for Remus."

Sirius nodded tersely, and then turned on his heel, heading towards the floo.

"Wait, Sirius!" Snape called. Sirius turned, shocked by the use of his given name from him. Snape paused, unsure, then –

"Tread carefully," he said quietly. Sirius nodded, and left the office.

"I hope he does nothing foolish." Snape said softly. Albus nodded.

When Sirius flooed home, he walked to an empty kitchen. Or at least, semi empty. Ron Weasley was sitting on one of the barstools, and he appeared to be in deep thought.

"Ron?" Sirius called. "Where is everyone?" Ron started slightly.

"Hey," he said, rather awkwardly, "Is everything alright?"

Sirius nodded slightly. "Not exactly."

Ron nodded. "Well, we're planning on going to the muggle mall to by swim suits, and then we're going to hit the beach. You going to join us?"

"Er, yeah, I will. I just need to talk to Remus first."  
"Yeah, I think he's in his room, with Tonks." Sirius nodded his thanks, and turned to leave.

"Listen, Sirius?" Sirius turned back.

"What Ron?"

"Treat him right, yeah? I mean, I know you will. I do. But it's my job to say it, so I'm saying it, yeah?"

Sirius smiled slightly. "Understood." And he left the kitchen.

He found Tonks sitting on the floor leaning against Remus's closed bedroom door.

"I think he just wants to be left alone," she said softly to Sirius. Sirius shook his head.

"Absolutely not," he said firmly. He pushed past her into the room and then shut the door, locking it.

Remus was nowhere to be found. He went to the bathroom door and knocked.

"Tonks, I'm fine, I promise. Give me a minute, I'll be fine."

"Tonks might have listened to that bullshit, but I won't. Now, you know that I know about a million and one spells that will blast this door open. I don't want to ruin Hermione's house, but I…" he stopped talking when Remus opened the door. Sirius stared hard at him, battling with his anger.

"Padfoot, I.."

"You what?" Sirius asked. "You want to apologize? For lying to me? For not letting me help you? For not telling me that Fenrir hurt you in ways that I can't possibly imagine? For not letting me BE THERE for you?" Remus was shocked.

"You went to Dumbledore?"

"I was worried about you and of course you kept your mouth shut." Sirius responded, his voice rising. Remus was silent.

"I don't think you understand," Sirius said softly, regaining control, "that it physically HURTS me to see you like this. I can't help but think about the amount of times I abandoned you. After James's and Lily's deaths, after my own death…" his voice broke. "I just want to make it up to you, Moony. For godssake, why do you insist on making that so difficult for me?"

"Oh Siri, you don't need to blame yourself for all that. It's not your fault, you know that."

"And you don't need to blame yourself for your lycanthropy but you do anyway."

"That's different."

"It's not! How is that different? Is it your fault that you were bitten?"

"I wanted to…to KILL that little boy. I wanted to…to eat him." His voice was so low, Sirius could barely hear it.

"That's not who you are. I promise you, Remus, that's not who you are at all."

"How can you be so sure? You know more than anyone how close the wolf is to the surface. You could feel him when we slept together, remember?" Sirius smiled at him.

"That's easy. The most beautiful thing about you, is that your heart is in your eyes, Moony. They're the most expressive eyes I have ever seen, and whatever it is you're feeling shines in them. If someone wanted to know who you truly were, all they would need to do is look into your eyes." Sirius paused, and Remus blushed but nodded.

"But…I don't see…"

"Wait, I'll tell you. The thing is, I probably know your transformations better than anyone else, and no one else will probably ever know this, but as your body undergoes that awful change, your mind does too, and I know that because, Moony my old friend, your EYES change," Sirius said earnestly, "They change completely. You're not you anymore. Not at all. And they change even when you take the Wolfsbane potion, Remus. So I'm positi…" his words grew muffled as Remus crushed him in a hug, shaking with silent sobs against Sirius's body.

"Shhh," Sirius comforted him gently, "It's going to be just fine. You'll see. I promise you Remus you'll never lose me and Tonks and Harry and Hermione and rest of us. We'll always be there for you. We'll always love you."

From the doorway, Tonks smiled softly, but there was sadness in her eyes. "I'll never be able to compete with Sirius for his love," she thought to herself.

**A/N: **Hey guys, sorry it's taken so long. I'm practically drowning in work now that school has started up again, and although I lose myself in this story on a regular basis, I'm just not finding time to put my thoughts into words on paper (or rather, on the computer). Thank you for your infinite amount of patience, and I can't thank you enough for sticking with the story. Please, please review and tell me what you like and what you don't like. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Merlin knows you've been waiting long enough for it. *loves*


	11. Chapter 10

**A/N:** Hello readers, boy it's been a long time! I've been so busy with school &the like that I have had zero time to really put my heart into writing. I don't feel like this chapter is completely..done or perfected, but you guys deserve something! I hope you enjoy! Reviews are always appreciated!

In half an hour, the issue was resolved, or as resolved as it was going to be. Sirius and Remus promised each other that they wouldn't fight if they could help it, and they definitely wouldn't let Harry and the others know, even if they did. The pair wanted to be there for them, not the other way around. Everyone met in the dining room to discuss the plan for the day.

"Listen, I'll stay back today," Tonks said. "Someone needs to be here in case someone floos from the castle. And I already know how to use a phone, so I think it would be best if I stayed."

"You can't stay by yourself, Tonks, that's no fun," the twins insisted.

"I'll stay with you," Remus spoke up. Ginny sniggered quietly, and Hermione threw her a warning glance. Tonks looked at him in surprise.

"Are you sure? You don't have to," she said.

"No, I'm sure. I want to," he insisted, smiling. She smiled back. She couldn't argue with that, not even if it was the right thing to do.  
"So it's settled then," Remus continued. "Sirius, will you be able to manage them on your own? They can be quite a handful."

"We're right here," protested the twins, Ron, and Harry indignantly. Sirius laughed, messing up Harry's hair playfully.

"We'll be fine."

"Great, so I'm going to need help transfiguring the car. It needs to be able to fit nine of us and it can only fit four of us right now," Hermione said.

"Can't we apparate there?" Fred asked.

"No, we'll be too obvious. There's no way to really hide nine people apparating into the same spot."

"Alright, I'll do it," Sirius said.

"We did it with James's mum's car once didn't we?" Remus asked, remembering.

"Yeah, I think we did. Do you remember how we went about it?"

"I think so. Come on." And the two men and Tonks left to see to the car in the garage.

The rest of the kids moved outside. They were silent for a moment and then –

"Can you imagine? Living like they did growing up?" Ginny asked quietly.

"We are living the same way Ginny! Aren't we? I mean, we're at war, the Order exists, You-Know-Who is getting stronger…It's the same situation as before." Fred said.

"Yes but, we're learning from their mistakes. Can't you tell? And we're more protected, and we're more sheltered." Hermione countered.

"To be Remus…I can't even imagine what he goes through," Ron spoke quietly. "He's a werewolf and he goes through so much pain, and yet, he's so kind and patient. I don't think I'd be able to do it, if it was me. I don't think I'd be able to handle it the way he does. He's so…gifted. He makes everyone around him smile." Everyone nodded their agreement.

"And Sirius? He spent 12 years in Azkaban. That in itself must have been so difficult for him. I can't even imagine how he gets up and smiles and laughs," Harry said. Ginny smiled at him.  
"He's lucky to have you, Harry. He's extremely lucky."

"And I am lucky to have him."

"You know, this trip has been action packed and we haven't even been here two days," George said amusedly.

"Let's make the most of it," Ron and Harry declared together, grinning. Hermione looked at Draco who was watching all of them quietly. She gave his arm a little squeeze, and he looked down at her smiling.

"I agree," he said softly to her.

When the car was ready, Hermione drove them all to the mall. She hadn't driven in awhile, but she got them there safely, and she promised the twins she'd let them have a spin when they got a chance. The mall parking lot was crowded so they parked near the back, and Hermione led the way towards it, with Ginny and Ron. The twins, Harry, Draco, and Sirius brought up the end. Harry and Sirius walked hand in hand; Harry was still glowing with happiness. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a boy jumped in front of Hermione, flanked by four other boys. They were all grinning evilly.

"Well, well, well, look who it is. Little Miss Granger, what are you doing here?" His voice was nasty and taunting. Instantly Draco was there, standing inbetween the stranger and Hermione. Harry and Ron stood at her sides, warily.

"Draco, leave it, it's fine," Hermione said softly, "He's…" But the boy cut him off.

"Looks like you have a new boy friend. Be careful mate. She might just sleep with your best friend."

Draco practically growled at him. "Don't say another fucking word."

"Draco, please," Hermione said softly, trying to get him to calm down, but Sirius interjected.  
"Is there a problem here?" He cut in softly, and smoothly. The stranger's friends started to roll up their sleeves threateningly, but Sirus continued, unfazed. "Because I can assure you that you are severely outnumbered." Draco had his hand subtely on his wand, but it was unnecessary: the boy had enough common sense. He held up a hand to his stop his friends, and then glaring at Draco and Hermione one last time, he turned and left.

There was silence for a moment, and Draco was still glaring angrily at the retreating backs of the bullies. Hermione put an arm on his shoulder hesitantly.

"Draco, it's fine, I promise."

"He had no right to talk to you that way," he muttered angrily.

"You don't know that," she said, her words light. "For all you know, his words could be true."

Surprised, Draco turned around to face her. "But they aren't, are they?"

She laughed slightly.

"Oh, but they are."

"What?!" Several kids exclaimed at once.

"Edward is an ex-boyfriend," she explained, "and we broke up before fifth year, in the summer, because I couldn't handle a relationship with him, and be a part of what was going on at Hogwarts. His best friend, Jasper, is my best friend. We slept together after I broke up with Edward because I…didn't want to die a virgin, and there was no one else I trusted more at the time. Edward is angry because I didn't sleep with him, but Jasper was my friend first, and we were already broken up at the time. I have no regrets."

There was silence.

"It's a bit of an awkward story to share in the middle of a parking lot," she observed. The others nodded, and Ginny gave her a look that said they'd talk about it later, but no one spoke up. Finally, with a last look at the others, she turned and began walking back towards the mall. Everyone followed after a moment, but Harry held Draco back.

"So," he said, "When are you going to tell her you're in love with her?"

Draco paled. "I can't…I can't be in love with her."  
"It's too late for that and you know it." Draco sighed.

"Things are moving too fast. I…"

"You'll run out of time if they don't."

"I don't have the courage to be rejected. She's not in love with me."

"She's on her way there."

"She is?"

"She is." Draco was silent for a moment.

"I have to tell her." Harry smiled.  
"Good boy," he laughed, and Draco shoved him gently.

"Shut up, git." And they ran to catch the others.

The day was surprisingly normal for them. They hit the beach after the mall in their new swimsuits, eager to relax, swimming in the ocean, tanning on the sand, playing football in the sand (after Harry explained the rules of course.)...

Much to everyone's surprise, Draco and Hermione disappeared to get a bite to eat - which lasted for hours. ("I'm not surprised that they wanted to be alone together, I'm just surprised they had the guts to go about it," Ginny remarked playfully to Ron.) They returned, not hand in hand, as Ginny had hoped, but at least they were smiling and laughing. At the end of the day, a very tired family of friends left for home, where they were greeted with great news yet again, asleep on the couch and cuddled tightly together were Remus and Tonks! They awoke to find everyone grinning at them happily, except for Sirius who pulled Harry closer to him and put his chin on his head. Sirius had long accepted the fact that no matter what, a small part of his heart would always be in love with Remus. Sirius was happy for him, he was, but it was always a struggle to seem him with someone else. Though that was a secret he intended to take with him to the grave.

Remus and Tonks blushed at the stares but they couldn't stop smiling, and it was clear that the two of them had worked out their issues, at least for now.

Unfortunately, good news never seems to stick with the group for long. While the girls had gone up to discuss the events of the day, and the boys were hanging around playing exploding snap, wizard's chess, and just lounging around, Dumbledore firecalled.

Draco was called into a room and given some privacy, and when he came out he looked upset but resolved. Sirius knew instantly.

"I'm sorry Draco, I'm sorry it's happening so soon." Harry looked from Sirius to Draco, as Remus put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"You can fight this," Harry insisted. "You can stay here. You can turn to Dumbledore. Draco, this is your chance."

"I can't," Draco said brokenly, looking down. "My mother…"

Everyone looked away at this, afraid to look at him. Finally, Harry broke away from Sirius's grasp and moved to Draco's side.

"Did you tell her," he asked quietly. Draco shook his head. "You should then, she deserves to know before you go."

"I know. Dumbledore's given me an hour."

"Shit, Mal – Draco, I'm really sorry," Ron said softly. Draco nodded.

"Give me a minute." He climbed the stairs to the girls room, knocking, and entering slowly.

"Can I have a minute with Hermione?" he asked Tonks and Ginny. The two girls looked at Hermione who nodded, smiling. When they had left, she gestured for him to join her on the edge of the bed.

"Dumbledore flooed," he said softly. "I'm to leave in an hour to join my father."

"Oh Draco, please don't go! You don't have to! Stay with the Order, we'll protect you, I promise," she begged him, putting her hand on his shouler as if that small gesture could keep him from leaving her. She didn't know he had so little time. Draco shook his head, pulling away slightly and looking down.

"I'm sorry…" he said mournfully. "I can't. I just… can't." Hermione stood up and went to face the window. He didn't know how to continue, and there a silence fell.

"Then I guess we have nothing more to talk about," Hermione said abruptly, breaking it, and her words felt like a physical blow.

"I wanted to tell you…"

"I don't want to hear it."

"But…"

"I think you should go," she said, turning to him. There were tears in her eyes. "I think you should go. Now." Draco, afraid of her tears, and of seeing her cry, nodded slightly, and with a last glance at her he left the room.

He insisted on being alone to pack and get ready to go, and in a little under and hour, everyone gathered around the fireplace.

"Will we see you again?" Ginny was crying. He smiled bravely at her, and enveloped her in a hug.  
"I'm not sure," he replied honestly. "But I'll try to come back, I will."

"Hermione's not here," Ron noticed suddenly.

"Oh crap, I'll get her. She'll want to…" Harry trailed off when Draco shook his head.

"It's fine," he said softly, trying desperately to hold back tears.

"No, it's not," Harry said desperately, "She should be here." He looked pleadingly at Sirius to agree.

But Sirius shook his head. "He's right," Sirius said gently. "You can't force her."

Draco took a deep breath and shook hands with everyone hugging Tonks and Harry in turn.

"Good luck Draco," Ron said softly, and Fred and George clapped him on the back reassuringly.

He nodded at everyone, and with a last small smile, he stepped into the fire place, and was gone.

As soon as he was gone, Harry pulled away from Sirius and began to storm up the stairs.

"Harry…" Sirius called, attempting to restrain him, but he pulled away.

"No, leave it."

He barged into Hermione's room with every intention of yelling at her, but one look at her and he didn't have the heart to. She was folded up on her bed crying and instantly he softened and went to her, putting her arms around her and holding her against him.

"Shh… it's okay, it's okay. You tried your best, I know you did. Don't worry, we'll move on together okay?" he whispered into her hair constantly, and she clung to him desperately, breathing in his familiar scent, and trying to regain control of her emotions.

**Sickle for your thoughts? Please review! Hope you enjoyed!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Merlin, a new chapter so soon? Couldn't be! Haha, but yes here it is. Hope you enjoy!**

**I haven't gotten a chance to edit, but I thought you might appreciate the chapter being put up relatively quickly. If you find any terribly errors, please feel free to point them out. And review while you're at it! Thanks for reading! =)**

The next day, it was as though a light had been put out at the house. Everyone was quiet and gloomy. Harry would not be separated from Sirius for a even a minute and Ginny was constantly in the arms of one of her older brothers. Everyone was upset. Everyone but Hermione that is. She had apparently bounced back overnight and was as cheerful as ever. She insisted on teaching Fred and George to drive and Ginny to dance and she even insisted on cooking dinner for them all.

Three days later found Ginny pulling out all of the clothes in Hermione's closet. After spending the last couple of days in the house relaxing quietly, Hermione insisted that it was time to do something fun. They were to go clubbing in the night. With Tonk's help, Ginny resized and restyled Hermione's clothes and the three girls put together outfit after outfit trying to decide what to wear to Club Rio. Halfway through, Harry knocked on the door, distressed because he had no idea what to wear, and because according to him, Sirius would most definitely look gorgeous. So Ginny and Hermione gladly helped Harry pick out a stunning green shirt that matched his eyes, and tight black pants that looked sinfully good on him. When Ron came wandering in, they dressed him in blue to go with his red hair, and he walked out smirking. The girls grinned at each other happily. Finally, they could feel like normal teenagers, although in the back of everyone's mind was Draco Malfoy. And they were praying to Merlin that he would be alright.

When they finally were ready to go that evening, the group looked…stunning. Ginny was the most beautiful of all. She looked radiant in an all black dress with blue earrings and a blue necklace that was the exact color of her eyes. Her brothers watched her with guarded expressions, and Ron almost wouldn't let her out of the house. Tonks looked beautiful as usual; she had changed her hair to a jet black for the occassion and Hermione was dressed in a pair of tight pants and a cute top.

When Remus and Sirius left their room there were murmers all around. Sirius Black was wearing all black, fittingly enough, and he looked gorgeous. When he crossed the room to kiss Harry, the girls all gasped with delight.

"Looks like the girls have their entertainment set for a lifetime," chuckled George.

"Me too.." responded Fred dreamily, staring in the opposite direction at Remus Lupin. If Sirius was stunning, then Remus was out of this world. He wore a tight, long sleeves white shirt that highlighted his toned body, and jeans that fit him just right. On his neck was a chain with a tooth on it, and his hair he had brushed back so it just framed his face and brushed his eyes. On his left ear he wore a small earring.

He waved his hand in front of Fred's eyes, and grinned at his expression.

"What are you staring at?" he asked, completely oblivious. Fred turned to Sirius and rolled his eyes.

"Please help your dear friend get a fucking clue." He told Sirius. Sirius, who was hugging Harry to him and watching the scene, laughed heartily.

"I tried, believe me, I did. He's hopeless. Maybe Tonks can be more successful." Tonks grinned.

"Maybe, but Fred, if you continue to covet my boyfriend, I'll have to hex you." Remus blushed a bright red.

"Tonks he can't be…"

"Shut up Remus," chorused Harry, Sirius, Fred, George, and Tonks.

Ginny and Hermione laughed at his taken aback expression.

"Just let it go, Remus," Hermione insisted, "You'll never understand them."

They drove to the club together, and at the door, Hermione hugged the bouncer, who exclaimed in delight when he saw her.

"Honey it's been so long! And who are your delicious friends?" He asked, eyeing Harry lustily. Sirius put a protective hand around his waist though, and the bouncer, Jerry, quickly averted his eyes. Harry laughed up at Sirius, and when Sirius growled overprotectively, he stood on his tip toes to give him a quick kiss.

"These are my friends from school, Jer. We're here on vacation for a week. How's the club doing?"

"Everything is fantastic! But go on in, we can talk later. You're holding up the line," and he ushered them through. Inside, Fred disappeared onto the dance floor with a pretty girl in about three seconds.

"I can't figure it out," Sirius shouted into George's ear over the loud music, "Is he gay or not?"

"We don't like to limit ourselves by such a silly thing as gender," exclaimed George with a smirk, and he too disappeared onto the crowded floor.

"Come on, let's dance," Sirius insisted, pulling Harry onto the dance floor, Harry laughing happily.

Tonks and Remus soon followed him, and Ginny was given permission by Ron to leave too, after she had promised to behave herself and be careful. Hermione turned to the bar, assuming Ron, too would join everyone on the dance floor, but instead he followed her.

The bar area was much quieter, and the two ordered two gin and tonics and sat in silence for a bit, listening to the music as though it was coming from far away. After a moment, Hermione spoke up.

"You don't need to baby-sit me, you know. I really am fine. Go on, enjoy."  
"No, no, it's fine. I want to be here with you. Anyway I'm not much of a dancer, and Lavender wouldn't be very happy with me." Hermione shrugged apathetically.

"What she doesn't know won't hurt her." Ron looked at her in shock.

"Bloody hell, Hermione, I didn't realize you disliked her that much," Ron said after a heartbeat, crestfallen. Hermione, realizing her mistake, tried to make ammends.

"Oh Ron, it's not that. I'm in a foul mood that's all. I just want you happy. If she makes you happy, then she makes me happy too, I promise. Don't worry, I DO like her." _Deep deep down…_

"Good," Ron said, his face breaking into a smile, "because you will always be one of the most important women in my life. Always."

"And you will always be one of the most important women in mine, Ronald!"

"Hey!"

On the dance floor, Harry and Sirius were moving to the beat, taking turns grinding and necking and not too far away, Tonks and Remus were enjoying themselves. But soon Tonks pulled away.

"I'm sorry," she said into his ear, giving him a kiss, "but I want to check on Hermione."

Remus nodded understandingly, and she looked at him for a moment.

What? He gestured.

"I don't know how I got so lucky," she explained into his ear. He laughed at her.

"We both did!"

"Go on, dance with Sirius and Harry," she said, laughing at him, and she went off to find Hermione.

Remus found Harry and Sirius who were facing each other and just dancing, and he snuck up behind Harry, and began to dance. Harry turned around, startled, but he relaxed when he saw Moony, giggled slightly, and began to dance back. Sirius laughed at the two of them, and they all enjoyed themselves for a song. Finally, Harry pulled away.

"Now that you've got someone to dance with," he shouted in Sirius's ear, "Let me go check on Hermione."

When he had left, Remus put his hands on Sirius's waist, and pulled him flush against his body.

"Come on, let's dance," he said smiling, and Sirius forgot himself for a song or two, moving like fluid against him, thinking about how it was before Azkaban, before Voldomort, before Real Life. Suddenly, remembering where he was, and with who, he pulled away.

"What?" Remus asked, concerned. Sirius shook his head, and walked away, pushing through the crowd. A bewildered Remus followed him as fast as he could. He found Padfoot sitting at the bar on his own, watching their group of kids enjoy themselves. Harry and Ron were dancing, and Hermione, Ginny, and Tonks were dancing: they were laughing and grinning, and really losing themselves in the music. They looked…like regular kids, and Remus smiled happily at the thought. He joined Sirius at the bar and ordered a drink for the two of them.

"What's wrong?" he asked Sirius. Sirius gave him a strained smile.

"Nothing, it's…nothing. I mean, we shouldn't… act like we did at school. Things are.. well, they're different now aren't they?" he stammered. Shocked, Remus took a deep breath.

"Listen, Padfoot," he said, keeping his voice gentle, even though on the inside, his friend's cut through him like a knife. "I'm not trying to…get with you, or anything of the sort. I would never do that to Harry, never, and I respect Tonks way too much to…"

"No!" Sirius broke in, anxiously, "Moony! I didn't mean that at all!"

"Then, I don't understand, it's just dancing between mates. We are mates aren't we? Harry and Ron are dancing. What's the difference between them and us?"

"We have baggage! Can't you see?" sputtered Sirius

"No, I can't. I put that, Us, behind me a long time ago, Sirius." Remus spoke firmly.

"I can't!" Sirius exploded helplessly, "I can't just put it behind me! I can't just…" and then suddenly he clapped a hand to his mouth. _Shit._

"Can't what Padfoot? Tell me, what can't you do?"

"Nothing, nevermind."

"Just…"

"No! I can't. Stop. Let's not talk about it." Remus eyed him carefully; his words had really surprised him. But they couldn't mean…

"Fine, alright." He said, putting an end to the conversation for now. He put a hand on his friend's shoulder, reassuringly, and they sat in silence for a while.

"Now isn't that a pretty sight," he breathed, grinning. Harry and Ron were sandwiching Hermione, and Tonks and Ginny were now dancing. They looked breathtakingly beautiful.

"Oh you perv, Ginny's about half your age!" Sirius said laughing at his mate.

"Look whose talking!"

Sirius chuckled, "Point taken." They watched their kids for a moment.

"But she is something else isn't she? She's really growing up to be beautiful. And, gods the way she was looking at your body Remus…I thought she was going to devour you."

"I don't understand the lot of you. And what is with their obsession with my body?! You're supposed to be the pretty one! Look at you, dressed in all black, and…" he leaned close to examine a small pendant that Sirius was wearing, fingering it gently, "hey! This is the necklace I gave you!" Sirius nodded, blushing slightly. The chain had a pendant that was of a dog, strongly resembling Padfoot, playing with a saphire ball. It was exquisite.

"I never take it off," he said softly, his voice coming out more intimately than he would have liked.

"How did you save it from Azkaban?"

"Hid it in the Whomping Willow."

"Oh!" Remus said, understanding. A pause.

"Anyway," Sirius continued, clearing his throat, and leaning away hastily, a pretty blush spread across his features, "I may be pretty, but you are gorgeous, my friend." Remus rolled his eyes.

"Whatever you say Padfoot," he said, skeptisim clear.

"Moony…"

"Sirius!" Harry called, approaching the pair. "Come dance with me, Sirius!" he said, smiling at him playfully.

"Harry," Sirius protested, "I'm exhausted. I'm too old for this."

"You didn't seem old when everyone was staring at you out on the dance floor."

"They were staring at you silly boy!"

"Yeah like the bouncer," Remus cut in, sniggering. Sirius glared. A small smile played at Harry's lips. He walked slowly and purposefully over to Sirius, and sat in his lap, straddling him.

"Please Sirius?" He kissed him slowly. "Dance with me," he murmered, giving him his best sultry smile.

"Oh go on you two. Or get a room, one of the two." Remus said affectionately.

"Oh alright," Sirius said – he pulled Harry in for a deep kiss, and then Harry grabbed his hand and the two of them strolled off to the dance floor. As they were leaving, Hermione, Ginny, Ron and Tonks headed their way.

"Wanna grab a table Prof…Remus?" Ron asked, pointing at a table over to the side. Remus nodded, and they headed to a booth.

Remus slid in and Tonks settled comfortably against his chest, and Ginny, Ron and Hermione settled opposite them, both girls leaning tiredly on Ron.

"I'm beat," Ginny said stretching contently. "This was fun! Thanks for bringing us Hermione."

"Anytime," she said, leaning over Ron to kiss her on the cheek. She smiled giddly at the fun she had brought to her "family" and shut her eyes contently.

At two o'clock in the morning the group stumbled back into Hermione's house, satisfied and pleasantly exhausted. They all looked at each other and then suddenly, Hermione started to laugh, and soon the whole room was laughing, holding onto each other and laughing and laughing and laughing. Harry grinned at them all quietly, leaning lightly against Sirius. When the group had settled George elbowed Fred, grinning and then said outloud.

"Hey Ronald, I think you should sleep in our room today."

"Wha..? Why..? Oh. OH! Okay, sure." He winked at them, chuckling.

"Hey wait, that's not fair! I don't want to sleep by myself. That's no fun!" Harry protested.

Remus looked at Tonks, and she smiled at him knowingly.

"Sirius can sleep with you, I don't need him," Remus said to Harry, while staring into Tonk's eyes.

"No, but no one should be alone, just in case. I'll stay with Remus."

By this time the whole room was laughing brightly except Harry, who apparently was too drunk to understand where this was headed.

"I'll give you a hint," said Sirius who sauntered up to Harry and kissed him deeply and obscenely. No one even pretended to look away, but stared at them, eyes darkening. Ginny moaned softly. Remus rolled his eyes, used to Sirius's tricks, and gently closed Hermione's mouth, chuckling.

When Sirius pulled away, Harry looked at him, dazed, and then grabbed his hand and pulled him towards his bedroom. As soon as they heard the door shut, Fred and George cackled.

"I think it's time for bed," Hermione proclaimed blinking slightly, and the group went off to enjoy their new sleeping arrangements.

As soon as Sirius closed the door, Harry had him against the wall, kissing him soundly.

"Shit Sirius," he said between kisses, "You've been teasing me all night." He rolled his hips into Sirius's and moaned. _Fuck._

"Harry, shh," Sirius said panting, "slow do – _oh._" He tried to grasp Harry's shoulders, but Harry would have none of it. Harry's hands were everywhere – on his chest, on his arms, on the bulge in his trousers and Sirius was…_shit_…and he bit his lip, and clenched his hands into fists but he couldn't stop from pressing into Harry's insistent palm, and the smallest amount of friction right _there _was enough and suddenly he came on a strangled gasp, falling weakly against the wall. There were tears flowing down his face and arousal left Harry like a punch to the gut.

"Sirius, hey, Sirius, what's wrong?" Harry asked, trying to get him to look up at him, but Sirius refused.

"Oh god Harry, I'm so sorry. I'm really…" his face was turned away in shame and embarrassment

"Shh… what happened? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, no, of course not. I just…I haven't…I mean…not since, before" he swallowed "Azkaban." Harry's eyes widened. "It's been_ years_" He murmered, still turned away, eyes hidden behind hair, voice full of shame and apology, "And then you were everywhere, and god it was wonderful but it was too much all at once, and shit Harry, I tried to control…but I couldn't and I'm so sorry."

For a second, Harry couldn't think. This was his Sirius, his _Sirius_ crying, and he didn't know what to do because Sirius never cried and…

"Harry," his voice was just a whisper but it was filled with self loathing. "This isn't. I mean. You deserve better than this old man. You deserve better. I'm damaged goods Harry. I'm simply not good enough for you. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I…"

"Stop," Harry said cutting him off firmly. "Please just stop. I think you're wonderful Sirius. You mean the world to me. There isn't anyone I'd rather be with. I've tried, believe me I have, to stop loving you but I can't. I will never be able to stop loving you and…"

"I'll stay away. I'll take missions away from Hogwarts. I'll stop writing to you. In time your heart will heal. I'm sure. It's probably just infatuation anyway."

"NO!" Harry shouted at him, his voice panicky. The thought of Sirius abandoning him made him sick. "Sirius don't you dare leave me. Not even for a second."

Sirius spoke quietly, his eyes cast downwards, "Maybe it's for the best."

And suddenly Harry was furious.

"You think you know what's best for me? Fuck off. Sometimes I feel like you don't even KNOW me. So just, fuck off. Get the fuck out of here."

"You think this is normal Harry?! You think what we're doing here is right?! Maybe in our small bubble of a world here, but in the real world? Where it counts? Do you really want to be seen with an old man like me? Think about it! Maybe you didn't notice, but I SAW the stares we got. People looked at me like I was disgusting. They think I'm ruining your life."

"They don't know a thing about my life. They have no right to judge you or me. Maybe you're right. Maybe we should end things here. After all if you can't even handle the judgement of a few strangers, you'll never be able to handle the judgement of people that matter."

"It's not that I…" Sirius began defensively.

"It is! You're scared of what other people think! You're not strong enough to handle it! You've had it so fucking easy. Good looks, good friends, good grades…everything handed to you on a fucking platter. And…"

"I suppose being blamed for my best mate's death and being sent to Azkaban for 12 years fits somewhere in all this?" Sirius cut in darkly. Harry hung his head.

"I'm sorry Sirius," he said remorsefully. "I just…I don't want to lose you. I don't think I could bear it, now that I know what it's like to have you." Sirius lifted his chin up and kissed him gently.

"I love you so much Harry. I just want you to be happy. If you're happy with this, then I'm happy. Just, don't be afraid to tell me how you feel. I don't want you think that you have to be forever tied down, because you're afraid of hurting me. I want you to know that you deserve better, and that when this is over, you should be with someone who deserves you."

"And if that time never comes?" Sirius laughed and kissed him on the nose.

"Then it never comes." Harry smiled warmly.

"Come on, let's go to bed, I'm exhausted. And we can snuggle. I love snuggling." Harry laughed at him. They undressed down to their boxers and got into bed. Sirius gathered Harry into his arms, and pulled him close and Harry sighed contently. They fell asleep quickly.

**STOP! REVIEW! Thanks! *****hugs***


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